The result of the Douglas Rennick case will be interesting.  It is the sort of case that could really set a precedent.  For those of you that do not remember, Douglas Rennick is the Canadian man that is nailed to the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act cross.  Rennick was not operating online casinos, he was acting as a winning distributor between players and online casinos.

He lives in Canada and operated in Canada, but he apparently serviced United States customers as well.  Rennick apparently processed will over $350 million in payments from online casinos.  In order to do this he opened several bank accounts in the United States under a variety of names.  This proved to be his downfall.  Rennick is being charged with banking fraud in addition to all of his online gambling related charges.

Rennick allegedly established bank accounts and Washington Mutual and Union Bank of California under no less than five different corporate names.  Rennick’s indictment was filed in the Southern District of New York.  The indictment claims that Rennick “falsely represented that the accounts would be used for such purposes as issuing rebate checks, refund checks, sponsorship checks, affiliate checks and minor payroll processing.” 

If Rennick’s rights as a Canadian national do not protect him from conviction, he will be forced to pay $565,908,288 in monies earned from his winnings distribution business.  He could also face as much as 55 years in prison.  There is no word as to whether Canada will protect him, but Canada has much more lenient laws in regards to online casinos, than does they United States.