Former Star Go Player Turned Hold'em Association Chief...Jailed for Running Illegal Gambling Houses

Court Sentences Defendant to Two Years and Two Months in Prison

The court has sentenced the head of a hold'em association to a prison term for operating casino games at a hold'em venue and opening gambling houses at hold'em pubs nationwide.

Quoting legal sources on the 22nd, Yonhap News Agency reported that the Busan District Court Criminal Division 10 Single-Judge Panel (Presiding Judge Heo Seongmin) sentenced a well-known amateur Go player in his 40s, identified as Mr. A, to two years and two months in prison and ordered the forfeiture of 180 million won, on charges of opening gambling places and violating the Tourism Promotion Act. The court also fined B Hold'em Association, a non-profit corporation he established in June 2021, 20 million won.

Mr. A, who was the chairman of B Hold'em Association, was brought to trial on charges of conspiring with 53 business owners from November 2023 to March 2024 to open 53 gambling houses nationwide, including a hold'em venue in Busanjin District, Busan. The 53 gambling houses were found to have handled a total of approximately 3,393.18 million won in deposits to the association.

Busan District Court. Yonhap News Agency

He was also indicted on charges of operating casino games at a hold'em venue in Busanjin District between February and March 2024, where he provided casino tables, chips, and cards and hired dealers to run casino games for an unspecified number of customers. He allegedly collected money from customers as an entry fee and had them gamble by playing the casino game "Texas Hold'em."

The Tourism Promotion Act stipulates that, unless one is a licensed casino operator, one must not conduct casino business that provides any specific person with property gains or causes them property losses.

During the trial, Mr. A denied the charges, claiming that he merely supported hold'em tournaments in a sound manner by acting as an agent for the payment of prize money, similar to sports competitions.

However, the court rejected his claims, citing the facts that only those who paid an entry fee could participate in the games, and that the business owners took 20% to 30% as commission and used the remaining entry fees as prize money.

The court stated, "There are structural flaws in the prize payment agency service, and despite the illegality of its operating method, he admitted many hold'em pubs as member companies and encouraged hold'em games with gambling characteristics, so his responsibility is grave."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.