Alleged Poker Scam Artist Living it up in Costa Rica

21 Aug, 2008 Online Poker, Poker Gossip

With the Absolute Poker and UltimateBet cheating scandals still fresh on everyone’s minds, it isn’t surprising that the people allegedly involved have attracted media attention whenever they turn up. “AJ Green” also known as Allan Grimard is the subject of much speculation of the “hole card” fiasco which many players are still seeking closure on. Many people belive it was Grimard that played under the infamous POTRIPPER account.

It has been reported that this week by Gambling911.com that Grimard is living it up in Costa Rica, home to several online gambling companies. He is reported to be building a large home in Los Suenos, an upscale resort in the area, driving an expensive new SUV and sailing a yacht.

Grimard, once a low level supervisor at an online gambling company, has mysteriously amassed enough wealth to partake in these ventures but how he has done that is anyone’s guess. It should be mentioned that despite in-depth investigations by Gaming Associates and the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, Absolute Poker has not publicly named Grimard as being involved in the scandal.

It has been alleged that the Canadian-born Grimard is a close college friend of the widely regarded founder of Absolute Poker, Scott Tom whose name has also surfaced in reports. It has also been reported that there is a sealed US indictment being held for Tom’s father who is said to be an Absolute Poker investor. What charges are involved is still unknown and surprisingly has not attracted much public attention or coverage despite the multi-million dollar makeup of the Absolute Poker hole card cheating scandal.

Insiders have claimed that none of Absolute Poker’s investors or management are to travel to the United States fearing further indictments despite the fact that Scott Tom is no longer involved with the company. AP is now owned by former Kahnawake chief Joe Norton’s Tokwiro Enterprises group. It was recently announced that Absolute Poker and UltimateBet is planning a merger into a new super-network titled Cereus.

In more positive news developments, the Kahnawake Gaming Commission, who licenses both Absolute Poker and UltimateBet, has hired Frank Catania, former New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement director and respected online gambling regulatory consultant, to lead the team probing the cheating scandals at both sites.

To date Tokwiro has paid a rather minuscule fine in the amount of $500,000 to the KGC in regards to the Absolute Poker scandal but doubt still lingers due to the lack of public exposure or prosecution of the fraud perpetrators. The initial denial of both sites when players complained of cheating further complicates the issue. Tokwiro finally took action after the allegations were proved conclusively by an expert player investigation at a major online poker forum.