Man Pleads Guilty To Running Illegal Charity Poker Games In MichiganBusiness Owner Pleads To Misdemeanor |
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The state of Michigan could jail a man for two years after he admitted to running charity poker games without a charity gaming license, according to DetroitNews.com.
Joseph Puertas, 54, ran some games from his bar called Shark Club between February 10-13, 2012. He gave the state the $11,800 in proceeds from the poker games.
Still, he might go to prison for two years.
“Shark Club previously hosted ‘millionaire parties’, and our investigators discovered poker games were being played on multiple occasions at the Shark Club without any charity involvement,” Rick Kalm, executive director of the Michigan Gaming Control Board, said in a statement. “By running an unlicensed gambling business at the Shark Club, Puertas undermined all charitable gaming.”
His sentencing is scheduled for July 2 in Oakland County Circuit Court.
Puertas was a member of the Michigan Charitable Gaming Association but resigned following the illegal gambling charge. His case is one of several similar ones ongoing in the state.
The Michigan Chariable Gaming Association is also currently suing the gaming control board over the new strict rules overseeing charity poker.
Revenues from Michigan charity gaming increased from $7.9 million in 2004 to $197 million in 2011, and so it fell under great scrutiny from the state. Many see the new rules as regulation overstepping its boundaries and killing jobs.
Detroit casinos recently suffered their third straight losing year.
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