French Poker Pro Grégoire Auzoux Arrested, Accused of Running Offshore Casino
Grégoire Auzoux, a professional poker player, was detained and accused in France of running an offshore online casino that attracted French clients and made hundreds of millions of euros.
Auzoux is one of two French nationals accused of managing the Crésus Casino and other related brands, such as Jackpot Bob, Lucky 8, Casino-privé, and Olympecasino, but without actually owning them. Prosecutors claim that these activities, which had their headquarters in Curaçao and Cyprus, brought in close to one billion euros.
In high-stakes poker circles, Auzoux is well-known and has won over $3.3 million in live tournaments.According to the Hendon Mob database, this includes a $1.05 million score at a Triton event in 2023 and a $223,500 victory at the Onyx Super High Roller Series in Cyprus this summer.
Some Clients Didn't Pay
When victims came forward to complain about not being able to withdraw their winnings, authorities were made aware of the presence of the website. The consumers who identified themselves suffered a total loss of
€201,755 (US$234K), according to the prosecution.
After its primary website, Cresuscasino.com, was blocked by an order from France's gambling authority, ANJ, Crésus Casino is accused of playing cat and mouse with French authorities by reappearing behind differentmirror domain names.
"More than 98% of the activity was aimed at French residents, representing more than one million monthly visits,” Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said in a press release Friday.
As part of judicial cooperation with the Republic of Cyprus under the auspices of the European Union's Judicial Cooperation Unit (Eurojust), raids and bank account seizures were conducted at "the home of one of the two French nationals" in Cyprus, Beccuau continued.
Money Laundering and Organized Crime
The two defendants were formally charged with money laundering, functioning as members of an organized gang, organizing illegal gambling, and providing unlawful online gaming when they appeared before a judge in Paris on Friday.
A maximum 10-year prison sentence and a fine of €750K (US$875K), or half the value of the laundered asset, are associated with the final offense alone. The men are still being held pending trial.
In order to encourage gamers to return to the regulated market, ANJ has relied on court-ordered restrictions and public warnings as part of France's increased efforts to combat unauthorized online gambling. The agency issued a warning last year about the hazards to consumers associated with unregistered websites, including payment fraud and the absence of dispute procedures.
