Beckley, one of the co-founders of Absolute Poker along with Scott Tom, appeared in Manhattan court today according to Bloomberg News and admitted to conspiring to break U.S. Internet gambling laws and conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud.
The maximum prison sentence for bank fraud is 30 years but Beckley will likely serve 12-18 months under his plea agreement, Reuters says.
"I knew that it was illegal to accept credit cards from players to gamble on the Internet," Beckley said before his plea, according to the report.
"I knew it was illegal to deceive the banks in this way."
Beckley, also referred to as "Director of Payments" at the hearing, told Judge Ronald Ellis that Absolute Poker accepted credit cards from US players between 2006 and April 2011 and disguised the payments, contravening the UIGEA.
Beckley admitted to hiring Ira Rubin in 2008 to process e-checks for Absolute as payroll processing, affiliate marketing or online electronics merchant transactions.
Rubin is also said to be nearing a plea deal.
Sentencing for Beckley is set for April 19.
Beckley is one of eleven defendants in the case brought by the US Department of Justice against Poker Stars, Full Tilt Poker and Absolute Poker/UB.com on April 15th, now known as Black Friday in the poker industry.
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