Calvin Ayre indicted, Bodog.com domain seized, yet business is as usual

Bodog is definitely one of the greatest names in on line gaming since they've been operating from the middle of the 90's. Unhappily, they’re such a great name that the united states Division of Homeland Security has been making a case against Bodog. This currently led to the seizure of the website name Bodog.com, which was reported by CalvinAyre.com.

The good news is that Bodog.com isn’t definitely that critical  to the company’s operation since American gamers make use of Bovada Poker now; those outside of the United States use the domain name Bodog.eu. Thus it doesn’t genuinely make much sense that the Department of Homeland Security would waste their time confiscating this internet site name.

As for Bodog founder Calvin Ayre’s thoughts on the issue, he was quoted as saying, “Not certain what to say. BodogBrand.com is a brand-licensing organization based outside the united states. The company left the market industry this past year and the domain name in question has been inactive globally for longer than that.” He added, “We are just presently doing brand licensing deals outside the united states therefore this domain name had no area in any of our existing plans.”

Bodog founder Calvin Ayre has been indicted by federal prosecutors in Baltimore and the Bodog.com domain name has been grabbed by the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland.

In the indictment unsealed currently, Ayre, James Phillip, David Ferguson and Derrick Maloney are charged with conducting a gambling business in addition to money laundering. Rod Rosenstein, the U.S. Attorney in Baltimore, alleges that the defendants "did purposefully and unlawfully conduct fund, manage, supervise, direct, and own all or part of an illegal gambling business, to wit, a gambling business involving on-line sports betting."

"Sports wagering is illegal in Maryland, and federal law prohibits bookmakers from flouting that law mainly because they're situated outside of the country," said Rosenstein. "Numerous of the harms which underline gambling prohibitions are exacerbated once the businesses function over the web with out rules."

The indictment alleges which Bodog communicated with 2 processors to facilitate payments with players. The processors known as in the indictment were JBL Companies, which allegedly processed at least $43 million, and ZipPayments, which allegedly processed at least $57 million. Money from either those processors was once grabbed by the IRS back in 2008.

Ayre responded to the indictments with a statement on his website, CalvinAyre.com.

“I notice this as misuse of the U.S. criminal justice system for the commercial obtain of huge U.S. companies," he explained. "It is obvious that free blackjack market is legal under international law and in the case of these documents is it furthermore clear that the rule of law wasn't permitted to slow down a rush to attempt to try to win the war of public opinion."

Site visitors that log onto Bodog.com are welcomed with a Department of Justice seizure see like the one that was plastered on the house pages of PokerStars, Full Tilt Poker, Absolute Poker and UB.com back on April fifteen, 2011. Nevertheless, the main difference in this notice is that it was issued by the Department of Homeland Security and not the Federal bureau of investigation.

The seizure should not affect the short-term business of Bodog. The Bodog.com domain name has not been in use since late this past year. That website name had recently been switched to Bodog.eu and American gamers have been able to access Bovada.lv since December. Each of those sites are working as always.