Absolute Poker / UB was one of the three poker companies that received an indictment on April 15 by the United States Department of Justice for offering poker illegally to US residents. Domain names of the said companies were seized as well as bank accounts that contained millions of dollars of player funds.
With the exception of PokerStars, all of the other sites have since ceased their global operations and their US customers have been paid. Recently, a deal with the DoJ between Full Tilt and new owners the Bernard Tapie Groupe would ensure that affected players of Full Tilt would have a chance of seeing their money. However, there has been no news on the status of funds of players of Absolute Poker / UB until last week on December 20, when Brent Beckley, one of the founders of Costa Rica-based Absolute Poker, pleaded guilty in a Manhattan Federal Court to charges of bank fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to violate a U.S. ban on Internet gambling.
The DoJ has since filed charges of fraud and other crimes against the owners and directors of these sites with the cases being tried and petitions having been filed by the different parties.
What the players affected really care about amidst the turmoil is what is happening with their money that was seized. There has been information leaked on a poker forum recently that Absolute Poker and UB (Ultimate Bet) are in the process of officially closing operations. Part of these procedures are said to include the customers receiving their lost funds. However, the players will likely be receiving only a fraction of the money that is owed to them and may be receiving as little as 25 cents to the dollar. This is similar to how creditors are paid in bankruptcy proceeding.
Considering that most players have probably already written off any chance of seeing a dollar, getting some money back would be a nice surprise. We will advise when something becomes more official.
“With the exception of PokerStars, all of the other sites have since ceased their global operations and their US customers have been paid.”
The only sites affected on April 15th were Full Tilt, Pokerstars and Abosulte Poker/UB. Excluding Pokerstars and Absolute Poker/UB, the only other site is Full Tilt, and they certainly have not paid their US customers. How is this statement true? Am I reading this wrong?