Former PokerStars Executive Sentenced in US

A former PokerStars executive who processed payments for players has been sentenced for his role in disguising payments for American players, bringing the number of sentenced defendants to 10 in the Black Friday poker cases.

Paul Tate had plead guilty to participating in the operation of an illegal gambling business, and could have been looking at five years behind bars. Tate, who lived on the Isle of Man voluntarily surrendered to the United States to face the charges, which is remarkable seeing as how he couldn't be extradited for the charge. That willingness to face the music saw US District Judge Lewis Kaplan imposing a penalty of $119,000 instead of a jail sentence.

Speaking to Tate, Kaplan said, "Given that you couldn't be extradited for this, you deserve a world of credit for coming to face the music."

Tate had worked for PokerStars until 2014, when the company was purchased by Amaya, Inc. He and 10 others were charged with an assortment of crimes related to operating online poker sites in the United States on what has been called Black Friday. Those charges saw Full Tilt, PokerStars, and Absolute Poker all halt operations in the country, and had huge ramifications for the industry in the United States.

As it stands, 10 of the 11 defendants in the case have plead guilty, with PokerStars founder Isai Scheinberg being the lone outlier who has yet to come to the United States to face any criminal charges.