The Bodog.com domain was seized by the US Department of Homeland Security Monday night. Visitors to the site were greeted with a message from Homeland Security and the Department of Justice stating that the domain had been seized on account of, “…illegal gambling…”
A report on gambling911.com suggested that the seizure was the end result of a long running investigation by Maryland authorities into alleged money laundering by individuals connected with the site.
Details are still emerging in this story and Maryland official are expected to release a statement on Tuesday with more information, including any charges that have been file in connection with the case.
Domain Had Been Dormant
The move left many gaming industry insiders, including Bodog founder Calvin Ayre, scratching their heads since Bodog.com has been all but dormant for almost a year. Bodog exited the U.S. market last year after the events of Black Friday in anticipation of exactly this turn of events. Most of their operation now works under the bodog.eu and bovada.lv sites. The DOJ has limited jurisdiction over .eu sites and seizing one of them can be very difficult, if not impossible.
Ayre Speaks
In a statement on his website, Ayre said, “Not sure what to say. BodogBrand.com is a brand-licensing organization based outside the U.S. The brand left the market last year and the domain in question has been dormant globally for longer than that We are only currently doing brand licensing deals outside the U.S., so this domain had no place in any of our current plans.”
Still Developing
Events surrounding this story are moving quickly and we’ll be reporting more details as they emerge.
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