Star Entertainment Prohibits Poker Players without Providing Reason
Star Entertainment continues to struggle after facing numerous regulatory mishaps in Australia, resulting in heavy fines for disregarding anti-money laundering (AML) policies. The casino operator has subsequently intensified its actions, arbitrarily banning poker players without offering a reason.
Craig Abernethy, an Australian poker player and creator of the Australian Poker Schedule website, has helped bring this issue to the forefront. This week, he started a petition on Change.org, which may eventually convince Star to reconsider its stance.
The situation has raised concerns and prompted interest, potentially forcing Star to reveal its underlying intentions for the bans. So far, the company has only responded to inquiries by stating that it doesn't need to provide a reason and that bans could lead to arrests.
Star's Mysterious Exclusions
Abernethy described in his Change.org petition, which currently has 520 signatures, that Star has barred at least six Australian poker players from its casinos within the past year. In every case, the operator has remained tight-lipped about its decision and declined to offer any recourse to the players involved.
Explaining the situation in his petition, Abernethy remarked, “The Star is not required to provide reasons or justifying the exclusions nor the information relied upon making the decision to exclude.” In a discussion with PokerNews, Abernethy verified that a source from Star “unofficially” revealed that the ban stems from certain players transferring large sums of money.
This seemingly placed them in the same category as money launderers, but Star has expressed no willingness to collaborate with the players. When players contacted Star, their queries were met with, "The Star is not required to provide reasons or justifying the exclusions nor the information relied upon making the decision to exclude."
Star could have avoided this situation by simply requesting information about the origins of the funds. Given the high-stake tournaments featuring $50,000 buy-ins, substantial money transfers are inevitable.
Abernethy highlighted that several poker community members have tried to address the issue with Star, as well as with officials from the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation and the Queensland government. Thus far, all efforts have led to nothing.
Consequences for Players
The immediate consequences of these arbitrary bans are being felt by the players. The World Poker Tour (WPT) is currently in Australia, where it maintains an exclusive partnership with Star.
As the Star Gold Coast began hosting the WPT series, Alex Lynskey, who ranked 8th on Australia's all-time money list, per the Hendon Mob, is prevented from competing. Also affected is Najeem Ajez, the recent winner of an Australian Poker Tour event in Queensland and a 3rd place finisher in the WPT Australia Main Event last year.
Other players have been requested to supply income statements in order to participate. This echoes the incident involving poker player Crispin Rovere, whose bank accounts were frozen following some deposits. Despite the sums being below AML reporting guidelines, Westpac took action nonetheless.
Rovere commented about the possibility of a "totalitarian" attitude becoming standard practice within the financial industry. It seems that Star has already adopted this approach.
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