The Feds have made another grab at money in US banks that at some point passed through online gambling and/or poker sites — seizing three more accounts held by payment processors with claims that the undisclosed sums in them are \”forfeitable\”.
This time it was the Maryland district going after accounts in California belonging to HMD, Inc.
In late July, Maryland-based federal authorities seized six other bank accounts from Electracash, Inc., also a payment processor alleged to be involved in laundering \”proceeds of an illegal gambling business\”.
Click here for a little more detail in the Baltimore City Paper, along with the latest seizure warrants.
In all these cases, the US District Court in Maryland has kept investigators\’ affidavits calling for the warrants under seal. The New York Southern District handled their June payment processor seizures the same way, until the folks behind Gambling911 filed a motion that forced the courts to unseal them (with redactions).
A year ago, Maryland authorities charged (but did not arrest) two men — Edward Courdy and Michael Garone — with money laundering connected to $24 million seized from various bank accounts during an ongoing investigation of Bodog. The charges against Garone and Courdy stem from two specific transactions they allegedly facilitated — one from Germany to Georgia (for $1.5 million), the other from Dublin to Nevada (for $2.4 million).
G911 claims the most recent payment processor seizures involve online gambling and operations other than Bodog.