possible moonlanding......who cares!
BETFAIR are calling for the return of winnings from online poker players after falling victim to what would appear to have been a late-night sting operation that resulted in the firm making overpayments estimated between £500,000 and £4 million this month.
The betting exchange, despite a refusal to publicly acknowledge the coup, emailed a number of account holders, accused them of collusion in exploiting what was a previously unsuspected systems glitch, and set a deadline earlier this week for the return of the money.
One punter, who won more than £101,000 and is known to the Racing Post, has refused to repay more than £55,000 and is threatening legal action after being prevented from accessing the balance.
The software flaw, which has since been corrected, resulted in players in sit and go tournaments on Betfair's poker site being paid out in error “in certain ‘All In' situations”.
It was allegedly discovered weeks before by a punter who, with a group of associates, decided to cash in during the small hours of the morning when the Betfair office would not be manned.
Although it is difficult to gauge how much the plot plundered as Betfair took swift action to stop or reverse financial transactions and suspended accounts when staff realised what had happened, it is understood the company's Neteller e-wallet, which always contains $1 million-plus, was emptied overnight.
A professional gambler, who claimed not to be among the instigators, said: “I was in bed at four o'clock in the morning when a mate phoned and said ‘You've got to get on Betfair and see this, it's incredible what's going on'. I joined in and turned £30 into $30,000
“It was probably a £3m-£4m coup that probably cost Betfair £2m because a lot of the money was recouped. You couldn't get your money later that day, and a lot of bank transfers were reversed.”
Betfair's determination to make good the loss is revealed in an email sent to one player, seen by the Racing Post, which demanded the return of winnings by 5pm on Monday, January 28.
It read: “As you will no doubt be aware, you recently received payouts from playing Sit & Go STT's (single table tournaments) on Betfair Poker in circumstances that resulted in greater payouts than intended.
“The relevant Sit & Go STT's were incorrectly set up to pay everyone involved in certain ALL IN situations and this error was exploited by you and others to generate substantial returns in a short space of time.
“As you are probably aware, these payments were obtained only by collusion between all players seated at the table. As I'm sure you can understand, the winnings received as a result of this exploitation must be returned.”
After reiterating Betfair's poker terms and conditions, and providing details for the bank transfer, the email continues: “We regret that this has happened and trust you will act appropriately and refund the sum claimed to us within the time stated.
“However, if you elect not to do so, we will not hesitate to enforce our contractual rights and take such steps as may be necessary to ensure repayment of funds owed.”
Despite being asked more than once for a response, Betfair have maintained a strict “no comment” strategy over the incident
19 Jul 2009 - 19:05
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