Black Friday prosecutor turns attention to DFS
Federal prosecutor Preet Bharara investigating whether daily fantasy violates federal law
The New York federal prosecutor who shut down PokerStars and Full Tilt in the US is thought to be investigating whether daily fantasy sports (DFS) operators FanDuel and DraftKings are violating federal law.
According to reports in the Wall Street Journal, US attorney Preet Bharara’s (pictured) office in the Southern District of New York is in the early stages of a probe into the two DFS giants.
Bharara was the driving force behind ‘Black Friday’ which saw the federal government shut down PokerStars, Full Tilt and Absolute Poker for continuing to operate in the US after the Unlawful Internet Gambling Act came into force in 2006.
The probe follows the DraftKings data leak scandal which has engulfed the DFS industry and its two power players FanDuel and DraftKings for the past two weeks.
Others investigating the legal status of DFS include the Department of Justice and the FBI, the New York attorney general, and gaming regulators in a number of states including Delaware, Georgia and Pennsylvania.
Last week the Nevada regulator released the findings of its own investigation into DFS and ruled the activity met the definition of gambling and required operators to apply for a sportsbook licence.
The majority of operators have now withdrawn from the state, including eSports operator Vulcun, but as yet no licence applications have been filed with the regulator.