Not long ago, Bitar and Full Tilt would have been dominating the World Series, with many sponsored players wearing Full Tilt patches at the big event.
Meanwhile in Las Vegas, the poker world’s signature competition, the World Series of Poker’s main event, is in full swing. Kaplan has been relatively hostile to arguments that were made by some of the 11 individuals indicted by the government’s online poker crackdown, but that does not necessarily mean the move is helpful to Bitar, whose case will now be reassigned to another federal judge. In addition, the federal judge overseeing the criminal online poker cases, Lewis Kaplan, recused himself from presiding over Bitar’s case on Monday because Bitar is now being represented by lawyers at Paul Weiss, the law firm where Kaplan was once a partner. The government also noted that earlier this year Bitar tried to grab $24 million held in his name in a foreign bank account that the government did not know about at the time. that the government would expand the case against him, saying in court papers this new information “created a powerful incentive to flee.” Bitar faces up to 145 years in jail if he is convicted on all counts. Bitar is facing very serious charges, charges that have grown over time.”įederal prosecutors had previously expressed concern that Bitar might try to leave the country because he was not aware when he returned to the U.S. “I will approve the bail package counsel has proposed,” Judge Engelmayer said in a court hearing, noting that Bitar voluntarily came back to the U.S. Bitar will remain in the New York area for the next 48 hours until he discloses to federal prosecutors all of the assets he holds both in the U.S. Five people close to Bitar are backing his bail commitments and will be on the hook if he does not honor the deal. For a big chunk of time that Bitar was chief executive of a financially thriving Full Tilt, both he and the company were headquartered in Ireland, but since its primary market was in America, Bitar was playing a high-stakes game.īitar’s bail terms include that he post a $2.5 million personal recognizance bond and he agreed on Monday to add a warehouse he owns to the cash and property he was pledging. Bitar has pleaded not guilty to the charges.īitar helped build Full Tilt Poker into the second-biggest online poker company in the world by defying a Department of Justice that claimed online poker violated U.S.
He had been indicted last year as part of the federal government’s crackdown on the online poker industry, but the indictment was expanded last week to include allegations that Bitar defrauded Full Tilt’s clients as part of a massive financial fraud. Bitar was arrested last week after flying from Ireland to New York and voluntarily surrendering to U.S.