Pitbull Poker Closes Down: Updates

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One of the more public and drawn out closures of an online poker room continues to generate news this week, as the principles in the controversy surrounding the shuttering of Pitbull Poker continue to make their case – in the forums and in the courts.

For those unfamiliar, a Cliff’s Notes: Pitbull Poker was a low-tier online poker room that served as the anchor for the Flash Poker Network. In mid-summer 2009, a handful of Pitbull players began making accusations of suspicious play patterns at the room. Those players and Pitbull representatives waged a fairly public debate over the issue. Shortly thereafter, Pitbull’s cashout policy became far more restrictive than it had been in the past; shortly after that, the room shut down with no notice to players or network partners.

The latest salvo: PND is reporting that a group of players and affiliates led by “JC Hawk” (no other name provided) has apparently set legal action in motion against the owners of Pitbull in Costa Rica. Exactly what type of action taken and what type of outcome expected is unclear at this point; JC had only this to say regarding the matter: “The government has been great to work with so far. They don’t want to see people from other countries scammed, as it hurts their trade market worldwide and scares investors away. The U.S. Embassy and the Costa Rican government are working hard to prosecute this and get any recovery they can.”

With the vagueness, one could conclude that we might just be witnessing a bit of a bluff designed to put pressure on Pitbull’s owners. We’ll update with details of any confirmed legal actions as they become available.

It’s also important to note that there has been absolutely no official verification (that we can find) of anyone from Pitbull actually being arrested / detained. All references to those arrests appear to simply be sourcing a post on 2+2 made by Pitbull rep Dave Brenes on the day Pitbull shut down.

Meanwhile, there’s still quite a debate raging over at 2+2 regarding whether or not there actually were ever super users at Pitbull Poker. The debate is a bit academic on some levels, as the room has shut down. Some would argue that proof of super users would be useful fodder in any legal proceeding against Pitbull’s owners; others would argue that debating the evidence sharpens the process and bright lines for investigating future super user allegations.

If that sort of debate interests you, you can parse through the tangents and engage in it at the 2+2 thread here.

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