Originally posted on 12/11/2015:

I'm down in SD right now and was surprised to see a sign on the door of the Palomar Club from the fkn FBI that the site was closed. Looked it up and see the sht hit the fan with their little operation out of the back room. The Village was a nice spot and the Palomar was a degen donkfest so personally I'll be sad to see them go. Only positive I can think of is a bunch of fresh blood up at O11 so let's all hope this isnt too bad long term for SD poker.

http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/...ard-club-feds/

http://www.justice.gov/usao-sdca/pr/...ney-laundering

The investigation, which began in 2013, involved hundreds of intercepted calls and text messages, border crossing records plus extensive surveillance and reviews of financial records.

Stroj, the lead defendant, is described as a large-scale international bookmaker based in the San Diego area. He is charged with conducting an illegal bookmaking business, conducting an illegal poker and blackjack business and conspiracy to launder money.

According to court records, Stroj and codefendants used offshore gambling websites, including betblackdiamond.com, LBTsports.com and diamondsb.ag, to manage his bookmaking business. Stroj used financiers, a business manager, sub agents, money runners, money couriers and debt collectors to conduct the bookmaking business and launder millions of dollars.

The bookmaking clients would make checks out to the casinos such as Palomar and the Village Club, or the Wynn and Bellagio casinos in Las Vegas, and the funds would be deposited into marker or player bank accounts, court records said.

During one intercepted call, Stroj discussed gambling income and how to launder it through a card club: “Palomar is the best way I can wash the money. I don’t have to report it. I just deposit it at the Palomar and there’s no problems for me.”

In another call, Stroj said: “Between you and me, the best way to launder money, you do it through these local casinos in San Diego…that’s how, if someone owes me a 100 ($100,000) and they want to wire it to me, I wire it to the Palomar and leave it in my player’s bank and they give me chips.”