According to the Associated Press, a man held in custody related to the armed robbery of the PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) Berlin event last Saturday has been released due to a lack of evidence. The Associated Press sources an unidentified Berlin Police spokeswoman.
The news outlet added that $328,000 was stolen from the Grand Hyatt Hotel in the German city. The Associated Press story detailed the suspect’s stay in custody before ultimately being set free: “The suspect, who was detained late Friday, denied throughout several hours in questioning having taken part in the heist at the Grand Hyatt hotel in the capital.” A total of four robbers stormed the EPT Berlin tournament registration area exactly one week ago in a mid-afternoon heist. No one was injured and the assailants did not enter the tournament area.
According to MSNBC and the Berliner Morgenpost, the man arrested may have been involved in a separate Berlin casino robbery six years ago: “The [Berliner Morgenpost], citing security officials, said a man was arrested late Friday in Berlin and that he was believed to have also been involved in a Berlin casino raid in 2004.” Bluff Magazine added that the suspect was purportedly of Arabic origin. The entire raid was caught on tape by dozens of security cameras as well as the personal cell phones of tournament participants and staff. Also running at the time was EPTLive.
Being debated is who was responsible for the decision for tournament security guards to be unarmed. PokerStars officials told a German news outlet on March 8th, “EPT events are run by local organizers. In the case of the EPT Berlin event, it was the Spielbank Berlin. Hence, they are responsible for the security team.” The EPT Berlin marked the roving tournament series’ first trip to the German metropolis. A total of 1,000 players turned out for the Main Event of EPT Berlin.
On the horizon in the United States is the 2010 World Series of Poker (WSOP), a multi-million tournament series that will play out at the Rio All-Suite Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Last time out, the $10,000 buy-in WSOP Main Event drew 6,494 players for a total purse of $61 million. Team PokerStars Pro member Joe Cada took down the $8.5 million first place prize, more than six times what Kevin “ImaLuckSac” MacPhee pocketed for winning the EPT Berlin Main Event last weekend.
The robbery halfway around the world has attracted the attention of Harrah’s officials in Las Vegas. WSOP Communications Director Seth Palansky told Poker News Daily that in the wake of the high-profile heist, the WSOP may take additional steps beyond its usual security measures in order to prevent a similar occurrence: “Obviously, the robbery raises eyebrows and is definitely on our radar. We’ve also had a security briefing since then. It really is night and day what happened in Berlin. We’re a casino and we’re used to having all of these scenarios.”
Palansky added that plenty of surveillance exists on the WSOP playing floor: “There are hundreds of cameras at the WSOP and the Amazon Room is treated like a gaming floor. I don’t want to reveal security plans, but we feel very comfortable with what we will have in place to ensure it’s a safe place to be.” Last October, the Las Vegas Sun reported a robbery of Danny’s Slot Country on the Boulder Highway.
Stay tuned to Poker News Daily for the latest updates on the EPT Berlin armed robbery.
