The chief executive of Full Tilt Poker, Ray Bitar, was arrested by the FBI on Monday after his arrival at New York’s JFK International Airport.
He faces nine charges including bank fraud, money laundering, wire fraud and operating an illegal gambling business. If convicted, he could get up to 145 years in jail.
Federal prosecutors have also filed a superseding indictment detailing new allegations about Bitar’s alleged efforts to conceal Full Tilt’s crash that resulted in the company being unable to repay player money following the April 2011 crackdown on online poker in the US.
In a statement, he said: “I returned voluntarily to the US from Ireland to face the charges against me. I know that a lot of people are very angry at me. I understand why.”
