Undercover agents gathering information on poker tournaments

Undercover agents gathering information on poker tournaments By ALAN SAYRE Associated Press Writer State liquor regulators are going undercover to gather information on poker tournaments staged by Louisiana bars and starting raids on establishments hosting the games, a top official of the state Office of Alcohol and Tobacco Control says. Last fall, the agency warned establishments with liquor licenses that it would be considered illegal to have "Texas Hold 'em" poker tournaments. Bar owners have contended the game is legal as long as bar owners or tournament organizers do not take a cut of the pots. But ATC said that since the bars sell more drinks during the tournaments, they are, in essence, running a gambling business by piling up "indirect profits" - mostly through increased drink sales on the nights of the games. A crackdown could result in criminal charges against bar owners and loss of liquor licenses, ATC has warned. In Texas Hold 'em, players are dealt two cards each and can use five community cards flipped over in the middle of the table to make the best hand. Players can risk everything on a single turn of a card. The game has resulted in similar enforcement fights against illegal gambling in other states, some of which are studying possible changes in their laws. In the Louisiana case, bars filed suit in Baton Rouge in October to stop the planned crackdown. But a judge ruled that no such action could be taken unless actual charges were filed. Both sides in the dispute have conceded that the issue will have to be decided in court. "If you have a Monday night or a Tuesday night tournament, and these barrooms have been closed on that night, and it turns into a $2,000 to $3,000 night, then that bar is benefiting from the tournament," Steve Spalitta, ATC director of enforcement, said Friday. Undercover ATC agents are working statewide to identify and observe bars staging the tournaments, Spalitta said. "We're in a fact-finding mission; we now have undercover agents out there," he said. "We have undercover operations going on throughout this state." Agency head Murphy Painter said the first concern was ferreting out bars where owners or tournament organizers are taking a cut of the pot, which he said is a clear violation of state gambling law. So far, ATC agents have made arrests in the cases of two bars hosting the tournaments. Both cases involved illegal payments, Spalitta said. In early December, two people were arrested at an Ascension Parish bar after ATC agents accused the tournament organizer of taking a cut of the pots and the bar owner of paying the organizer to stage the tournament. About the same time, three people were arrested at a Lafayette bar were dealers allegedly were demanding tips from winning players. In addition, documents suspected to be tied to illegal sports betting were seized by ATC agents, Spalitta said. Spalitta said making cases on "indirect profits" will take more time. "That is next," he said. "We have not done any inspections yet on those, but it's coming. That will require a complete audit by a CPA, financial records and payroll records. What we do will have to hold up in court."