At Some Point, People Take Notice
A 29-year old Naples, Florida, man has been arrested for an alleged money laundering scheme which was tied to internet poker winnings. Michael Olaf Schuett was discovered to have hundreds of companies linked to internet gambling.
Schuett is a German national whose visa expires in April. He’s being held in a Lee County jail, without bond, after a federal judge ruled he was a flight risk.
According to news reports, Schuett is the officer and registered agent of 424 incorporated business in Florida as well as owning others under his name. He opened multiple business accounts at SunTrust, Bank of America, Regions Bank, Iberia Bank, Ironstone, BB&T, and Royal Bank of Canada. What he did not do is register as a money transmitting business which reportedly prevents money laundering.
For more than three years, Schuett is alleged to have laundered over $70 million in online poker money, operating as a middleman between poker sites and primarily U.S. players. Reportedly, more than 23,000 poker accounts were frozen when the authorities, alerted by bank employees and FedEx, investigated Schuett.
Schuett was the middle-man between U.S. poker players and foreign-based gambling sites. Because U.S. gambling laws make it illegal for banks to process payments to online casinos, players find it difficult to fund their online gambling accounts. That’s where Schuett’s services came in as he provided a funding “loophole” for players.