Neteller co-founder, unlawfully arrested by american goverment: "end global warming"
 

Neteller official pledges to fight charges

John Lefebvre, the co-founder of Neteller who stands accused of laundering billions of dollars in illegal online gaming proceeds, plans to fight all of the charges against him, according to his lawyer.

"He's going to be contesting everything we know about the charges right now," said Vincent Marella, his attorney, on Wednesday.

Stephen Lawrence, the other founder of the London-listed online money transfer company who is charged alongside Mr Lefebvre, last week confirmed that he would also contest the allegations.

Mr Lefebvre is on $5m bail and has had his passport confiscated after being arrested in Los Angeles last Monday. At the hearing on Wednesday, he appeared confident and relaxed. He refused to comment on the charges against him, and spoke only to say "end global warming".

The judge ruled that his travel should be restricted to the central district of Los Angeles and the southern and eastern districts of New York, where the charges against him are filed.

His lawyer described the circumstances of his arrest as a surprise and said the US authorities were trying to send a message with the recent spate of arrests in the online gambling industry. "I think they want to stress the point that they are serious about enforcing gaming laws."

The US justice department considers online gambling to be illegal although it is an established and regulated industry elsewhere in the world. David Carruthers, former chief executive of Betonsports, is awaiting trial in St Louis on fraud and racketeering charges related to his role at the internet gaming company.

But some US lawyers have questioned whether criminal prosecutions are likely to be successful because the companies involved are not based in the US.

Mr Marella questions the validity of the charges. "I don't know why the [US authorities] are bothering with this now, or why at all. It's not clear that this is a liable area of law enforcement."

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16795861/

LOL!

Anyway, I'll be very interested in hearing the verdict.

me too. I hope Neteller continue online.

Good for him...the US attacks anything it can that has value...Whatever happened to innocent until proven guilty?


Mr. Romance

is epass next?

Neteller won't cease to exist, they have just exited the US market. This situation can't stay like it is, and as americans have a unique urge to do anything that is "perverted", such as watching porn and gambling, I'm confident that over time there will be a severe clash...

end global warming?

fucking dick is gonna be locked in the slammer and he tells us end global warming.

fucking idiot.

Your ignorance and stupidity show in practically all of your posts.

dood i am not supporting the US actions

i am just saying he could have responded better.

heres the USA acting like a dictator, like a communist country and its gone bezerk but end global warming? idiot.

It's actually pretty smart, and it's a statement. The whole court hearing is still due.

damn

you mean he is saying "end global warming" cos USA didnt sign up for the fucking kyoto and USA didnt sign up for kyoto because it would have hit the USA economy. and their economy is the number one, which is why they are chasing the fucking poker companies.

is this what you are sayin that he is saying.... its all fucked cos USA is just serving its own interests at expense of anyone or anything else.

John Lefebvre is a very decent guy, and has bankrolled many green ventures in support of the environment. He particularly puts his money where his mouth is in fighting former tobacco lobbyists who deny global warming while putting tons of loot in their own pockets.

I know personally that Lefebvre has given away many millions in the service of all kinds of good causes.

Whatever you want to argue about how he made his money and the efficacy of the charges against him (they sound ludicrous) Lefebvre is a model of someone who uses his money for good, and has set a pretty good example for others.

Just my :2 cents:

That only applies to civilians. In business law, the burden of proof is on the accused.

Well, it seems that he is PERSONNALY accused of these crimes ....

I'm straight against the current DOJ US policy and completely support Lefebvre.

Samsam, if the US were to support their economy, they would be so smart to regulate and tax online gambling.

the US government takes non-US based companies to court? Who the fuck do they think they are? Why dont they mind their own business that's almost all the way down the drain - it needs it now more than ever.
They keep sticking their nose in their neighbours business but their own backyard is being neglected. Dumb fucks.

To be honest I see this as the perfect example of how some Americans reason, and it's crooked, as far as I'm concerned.

I happen to think Lefebvre's former business (he's only a shareholder now) is completely legitimate, but if I were not to agree with his models, how can some donations turn him into a righteous person for me?

You should read and learn a bit before making such bold statements.

I thought he made a good point.. "end global warming"

You dont respond to news allegation when your awaiting trial in a country you arent a citizen without a passport. Instead he chose to use his words to do some good.

More people should do this.. I suppose you would rather he said what everyone else says in the same situation " no comment" or "i'm innocent of all charges"

I hope that he saved a LOT of money. he is going to need it.

Exactly...:thumbsup

too bad he couldnt have escaped to somewhere nice
i fear most likely they will make an example out of him:(

What a joke... we should grab some US executive on a stop over and charge him with some ridiculous Canadian law.

Why would he have to escape? He hasn't broken any laws...

I live with one of the board members of the Poker Players Alliance, and she sent me a copy of this press release.

Online Poker Inches Closer to Exemption From Gambling Law

Gambling 911

January 24, 2007



Powerful industry leader and President of the Poker Players Alliance, Michael Bolcherek, claimed on Tuesday that the PPA was very close to introducing a bill to Congress that would ultimately have online poker exempt from recently passed legislation.



Michael Bocherek:



"As we know painfully well, poker has come under vicious attack over the past year. We continue to learn on a regular basis about home and tavern poker games being raided by law enforcement and how charitable Texas Hold ‘Em tournaments are being shut down. Perhaps even worse, we have seen the federal government’s full force efforts to curb this American tradition from the Internet. Legislation aimed at prohibiting you from funding your online poker accounts passed the U.S. House this summer, then was quietly slipped into a port security bill, literally in the dark of night, which was signed into law on October 13. During these troubling times, the PPA has given you a voice to express your opposition to the government’s intrusive actions and to rally in a united fashion against these constitutional incursions.



"The impact has been jarring, as the largest, publicly traded online poker operators shut down services to U.S. players. While many reputable sites still offer services to U.S. players, recent actions to close down payment processors and to subpoena banks are clear indications that the federal government is aggressively pushing the online gambling prohibition.



"We don’t have to tell you that a prohibition won’t work, and in fact will likely cause many more problems than it aims to solve. The unintended consequences will soon be apparent and all the good intentions of protecting children, helping problem gamblers, and ensuring the integrity of financial transactions will be lost as rogue sites and unregulated payment methodologies surface to replace the trustworthy operators the government is driving out of business.



"The PPA is not standing idly by. Poker should be exempt under the new law and that exemption is our primary goal. I have spent a good portion of January in Washington, D.C., meeting with lawmakers and others to get support for legislation that would provide a “skill game” exemption for poker. We hope to have a bill introduced very soon and then bring to bear the voice of more than 135,000 members of the PPA to push Congress to do the right thing. This would be a very positive development for the game. For the past year, we have been on the defensive, but now is the time to go on the offensive and get a bill introduced.



"This year we will also be taking the issue directly to Members of Congress in their home districts, to truly nationalize the debate. We had a tremendous response from our members about becoming PPA grassroots representatives on the state and regional levels. Soon we will be announcing our positions across the country and engaging U.S. Representatives and Senators where they used to feel safe from facts and spirited debate.



"While we are working toward the short-term goal of a poker exemption, the PPA will also be laying the foundation for the eventual U.S. regulation of online poker. This is the only proven public policy for online gaming. Licensing, regulating, and taxing online poker is technically feasible and the sensible and fiscally responsible thing to do. We will be working with others in Washington to move Congress in this direction.

He won't be the last person they make an example out of.

We're expecting the big poker stars who have interests in some of the big online sites to be hit next.

People like Chris Ferguson, part owner of Tiltware (the software makers of FullTilt) Howard Lederer part owner of Full Tilt, Doyle Brunson (Doyle's Room) etc.

That's not at all the point I'm making. I'm just saying in a vacuum that he's a very decent guy, and there are going to be people that paint him a certain way simply because of the business he's in and the charges at hand, whether he is guilty or not.

I'm just saying I admire what he's doing with his wealth. If you do some digging, his story is really inspirational. Some years ago, he was living on the street. Now he's scooped up hundreds of millions of dollars and wants to make a difference.

Anyway...

:1orglaugh

If John Lefebvre's humor is anything like his partners, "end global warming" equates to "go fuck yourself".

Very interesting read. :winkwink:

I'd put my money on some of the sportsbook folks taking it up the ass too, with Calvin on the top of the list.

As to all these comments about how the US is in the wrong here, that's not necessarily the case. Frankly, if LeFebvre were driving the getaway car for a bank robber in New Jersey, he'd be guilty no matter what country he was from, no?

Account deposit gambling has been illegal since 1961, a little thing called the Wire Act.

The ONLY legitimate off premise gambling in the US -- or involving US citizens in the process -- is horse racing, due to the IHRA -- and the money bet MUST go into the pari-mutuel pool, not into a booked account.

You can go and live in any country you want to, you can run your business from any country you want to, but at the end of the day, if you deal with (or are) an American citizen, you are subject to the laws of the US.

Once again, the IHRA is the reason for the WTO decision in Antigua v. United States, and that has specific clauses in it that create the legality. Calling your bookie, or betting on horse racing in most sports books online, is ILLEGAL if you are a US citizen or you are using the US banking system to place the bets.

The difference in going to a sportsbook in Vegas is very cut and dry. You place a bet, one wager, one payment into the book. You win the bet, you collect, one payment out of the book. Multiple bets are treated as different bets, with different payments into and out of the system. Casino sportsbooks also don't take IOUs or credit cards the last time I checked -- you get your own cash out of the ATM and bet with that.

When you use a credit card, a bank account, or any other non-cash instrument of funding to create an account -- one with a balance that is not immediately applied to a single bet or paid out as if it is a single bet, then you are handling account deposits and that is illegal here.

KK, it is the reason why casinos don't have debit card machines at their windows to sell you chips. You want chips, go to the ATM and get cash, then give them cash. It is a minor but very significant difference.

It's also the same reason why you have to take the money from a marker out in dollar amounts, get the markers, cash them in, then play with them, then pay the marker back in specific amounts.

no after i thought about what rhesus said, i realised that actually when he said "end global warming" he was saying:

"the us government is fucked. look what else the us government is doing to serve its own ends by not sign up to kyoto"

i wouldnt be surprised

Calvin has been on the top of their list for a very long time...LOL.

He has been very outspoken with an in your face attitude when it came to the U.S. Government. When the C.E.O of Betonsports got popped this last summer, Calvin cancelled his conference here in Vegas...very smart move.

calvin ayre, the man

mr BODOG lol

they will get him

I think he's bright enough to stay out of their filthy hands.

He most certainly is

And I hope that enrages those hypocrite government pricks

:warning

So a Canadian citizen, where fisting is allowed, will be arrested in the USA because an american subscribed to his service ....
Or an Italian webmaster catering to watersports ..
Ora dutch guy offereing beast ...

Does that go the other way around, such as an american citizen to be arrested in China because he operates in the USA a porn website ...

Funny way of seeing things.. If this is exact, one more reason to avoid stepping foot in that country :2 cents:

Agree DF - utter bollocks

If the US govt has a problem with the net - let them cut communications at their cost and get more in line with China and lock themselves into a closet.

I never did agree to *any* laws of any country other than those I chose to live in - the rest are a total irrelevance.

PS Sounds like a good time to enter the gaming biz, get some excitement and watch elements of the human species moan and groan *lol*

Agree DF - utter bollocks

If the US govt has a problem with the net - let them cut communications at their cost and get more in line with China and lock themselves into a closet.

I never did agree to *any* laws of any country other than those I chose to live in - the rest are a total irrelevance.

PS Sounds like a good time to enter the gaming biz, get some excitement and watch elements of the human species moan and groan *lol*

Agree DF - utter bollocks

If the US govt has a problem with the net - let them cut communications at their cost and get more in line with China and lock themselves into a closet.

I never did agree to *any* laws of any country other than those I chose to live in - the rest are a total irrelevance.

PS Sounds like a good time to enter the gaming biz, get some excitement and watch elements of the human species moan and groan *lol*

Sheesh.. nevermind dup posts.. it's three or more now..