Breaking news – BodogBrand has confirmed this morning that the Bodog.com domain name has been seized by US Department of Homeland Security. Shortly following, it became known that Calvin Ayre, the founder of Bodog, has been indicted as of this morning for charges of operating an illegal gambling business and conspiring to commit money laundering.
Forbes has reported that the indictment charges claim that he collaborated with James Phillip, David Ferguson and Derrick Malloney to run an illegal gambling business between June 2005 and January 2012. The charges focus on the illegal movement of funds across international borders, from Switzerland, England, Malta and Canada (among others), to US bank accounts to pay media resellers and advertisers, as well as moving funds to pay winnings to gamblers.
They are also accused of working with payment processors in the US and abroad, of which two are named: JBL Services and ZipPayments.
As of this writing the operation of Bodog’s European domains bodog.co.uk and bodog.eu have not been affected, nor has Bovada.lv, the rebranded Bodog branch currently serving US players.
To quote the official statement from BodogBrand:
“The BodogBrand became aware late on 27th February that the domain Bodog.com had been seized by US Homeland Security. This domain is not currently in use by the BodogBrand or any Brand Licensee and has not been in use since the Morris Mohawk Gaming Group (MMGG) switched its operations from Bodog.com to Bodog.eu in May 2011.”
“The BodogBrand.com revoked its licensing agreement with Morris Mohawk Gaming Group (MMGG) on December 15th 2011 after publicly stating it would do so in July 2011. It is equally important to state that Bodog UK, Bodog Europe and Bodog Asia have never taken bets from the US.”
Some media outlets are reporting that a former Bodog employee may have shared inside knowledge with the authorities. Stay tuned for updates.