Canadian man pleads guilty in NY to poker charges


September 19, 2012 at 1:42p.m.

Canadian man pleads guilty in NY to poker charges

NEW YORK (AP) — A Canadian man who was the payment-processing director for two online poker companies has pleaded guilty to conspiracy and gambling charges in the government’s crackdown on the businesses.

The plea today by Nelson Burtnick came in federal court in Manhattan.

The 41-year-old Burtnick admitted he knew he was breaking the law when he disguised payments from U.S. customers of Full Tilt Poker and Pokerstars to make it seem that they were not gambling proceeds. Prosecutors say he committed the crimes between December 2006 and April 2011.

Burtnick was among nearly a dozen people charged in a case that shut down the U.S. operations of the three largest poker companies.

His sentencing is set for Dec. 19. The charges carry a potential penalty of up to 15 years in prison.