It didn’t take long for Bodog to respond to the allegations made on Forbes.com that $24 million of its assets had been seized by federal authorities in the United States. The article stated that the money was taken from four of the largest banks in the U.S. – Wachovia, SunTrust, Regions, and Bank of America. A day later, Bodog struck back, issuing a press release in hopes of clearing up some of the inaccuracies in the article. Specifically, the press release takes aim at Forbes’ description of its relationships with JBL Services and Zippayments.com.

Forbes states that in the beginning of 2008, $14.2 million was seized from the four banks in question and was held in accounts belonging to “JBL Services and Transaction Solutions.” Bodog’s release states that the hiccup with JBL Services “happened some time ago and has absolutely nothing to do with the current payment processing challenges being experienced in the U.S.” The release continues, noting that “not one single player failed to get paid when this processor was disrupted.” In total, Bodog’s release seeks to ensure its customers that their money is safe within Bodog’s current banking and payment framework. The last thing the online poker room and sports book would want to do would be to spur a mass number of withdrawals at one time.

Forbes.com also describes that $9.9 million was taken from the Nevada State Bank from an account in the name of “Zippayments.com,” which is said to have helped “facilitate parts of the Bodog operation.” That piece of information was apparently news to Bodog, which fired back by saying, “The article falsely implies – but notably does not go so far as to state – that $9.9M seized from Zippayment’s Nevada bank accounts were funds on account for ‘Bodog.’ This is simply false.”

The press release is authored by Alwyn Morris, CEO of the Morris Mohawk Gaming Group. The Group took over the rights to market to the United States in 2007 from Bodog founder Calvin Ayre. The mogul stepped away from Bodog completely in the spring. Morris concludes by saying, “Customer deposits are safe and every player has and will always be paid.” All of the recent seizures of money are the end of result of an investigation opened by an agent with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) Criminal Investigation Division.

Bodog operates one of the largest sports books on the face of the Earth. Current wagering opportunities include who will win the 2008 World Series of Poker Main Event and who will become the next President of the United States. The probe conducted by the IRS was specifically involved in making bets on National Football League games and collecting winnings, according to Forbes. Handicapping service Covers.com recently stopped doing business with Bodog and other major worldwide sports book information sites may soon follow suit. Word of the seizure comes just one month prior to the start of the NFL season, one of the busiest times of the year for sports books.

In Bodog’s poker room, the site is on the brink of its first ever $250K Guaranteed, which starts at 4:00pm ET on August 10th. The buy-in is $250+$20 and the winner will walk away with at least $55,000. Satellites start as low as one dollar.

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