I would like to thank you for all of your support so far, this response of over 400 signatures in the first 48 hours shows how respected these players are throughout the poker community, and how outraged you are about this unfair treatment. 

So based on the "off record" conversations we have had with the Star , the conversations we have had with players around the process of playing highstakes cash games at the previous WPT festivals at Star (relating to source of income forms, cashing chips in and out of cashier),  and based on the fact the Star will still not provide any official reasons as yet, I am going to conclude that because of the amounts of cash and chips exchanged at the cashier, or via wire transfer, players are being flagged to provide employment details and source of income. The Star is then, without any follow up questions or requests for any clarification from players whatsoever, is automatically putting players in the category of organised crime, money laundering, illegal sources of funds and issuing players a Withdrawal of Licence letter by post banning them from all of their properties indefinitely. It doesn't seem at this stage to be related to handling chips and cash with other players on the property, or loaning money which has been suggested etc.

Currently we are in the process of still pleading with the Star to give the players an opportunity to prove that their source of funds is not anything illegal, something they are more than happy to do. Poker players should not have to prove their innocence without a genuine reason to do so. Poker players are not criminals, high stakes and elite poker players are not criminals, and we will not accept that they should be automatically classified this way without substantial evidence of illegal activity, which should have to be referred to police. None of these players have been reported to police, nor are they under investigation or facing any charges at all and it is offensive to treat players like they are, it is outrageous. 

We are still hopeful of reasoning with the Star without having to seek legal action, and will use your support as a testament to these players long standing reputations in our community.

We will also attempt to work with the Star to refine their current process to ensure future situations of innocent well respected players are not handed such bans, including at the conclusion of the upcoming festival. 

Thank you,

Craig Abernethy