It seemed unlikely, the former Full Tilt Poker CEO Raymond Bitar has been released on bail. He will return home to California this week, but will remain under close watch by authorities until his sentencing date at the end of July.
Raymond Bitar recently returned to American for the first time in over a year. He turned himself in to the American authorities, after being charged with running an illegal gambling operation and defrauding players. Full Tilt Poker was one of three websites indicting on Black Friday; however, Bitar faces jail time, as his website ran a Ponzi scheme, with the site’s owners taking player deposits to fund their own salaries.
His bail was originally set at $250 000 but after concerns arose about him fleeing the country, it was raised to $2.5 million. $1 million of the total was requested in cash, leading authorities to believe that he would not be able to make bail; however, that was not the case. Bitar was able to front $2 million in property so that he would be able to return home for the next few weeks.
In the meantime, local authorities will keep a close eye on the former CEO. Since his potential jail time has increased from 65 years to 145 years, the prosecution believes that he may make more of an effort to flee.
