A professional poker player accused an East Los Angeles deputy officer of stealing $500 worth of casino chips from him in 2020, but the district attorney’s office, following a lengthy investigation, recently decided no charges will be filed.

The alleged incident took place during a traffic stop, in which the apparent victim whose name hasn’t been identified claims Deputy Braulio Robledo illegally swiped poker chips out of his car.

Robledo denied ever having pulled over the poker player, but an internal investigation of video surveillance captured his patrol vehicle at the scene of the alleged crime.

“The Sheriff’s Department holds each of its members to the highest standards and expects them to act with integrity and professionalism,” the department said. “Any employee that violates the public’s trust and engages in misconduct will be investigated and held accountable.”

Multiple previous lawsuits have accused Robledo of being a member of a secretive gang within the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Station. Secretive deputy gangs have long been an issue within the entire LAPD. Robledo has a lengthy history of serious accusations, including in 2019 when three women accused the controversial police officer of sexual misconduct. In that instance, similar to the poker chip theft allegations, the DA’s office declined to file charges.

Why Charges Weren’t Filed

The alleged chip theft incident took place in January 2020, and only recently has it been determined that charges will not be filed. Shortly after leaving Commerce Casino, the poker player was pulled over due to expired car registration tags, according to the Los Angeles District Attorney Charge Evaluation Worksheet.

According to the report, the alleged victim has been “uncooperative” during the investigation. Therefore, “the Office is unable to initiate criminal proceedings against Robledo.”

Per the investigation’s findings, the poker player was pulled out of the vehicle and patted down for weapons during the traffic stop. The officer then let the driver go with just a warning.

An employee of Commerce Casino, who is also a personal friend of the driver, told investigators that she witnessed the traffic stop and that the alleged victim told her that $500 worth of casino chips were missing from his bag following the search. Video surveillance of the incident from a nearby business is a bit sketchy and hard to make out exactly what was going on. But, as the report explains, the photos do appear to show a pat down search of the driver on the back of a patrol SUV.

Investigators determined the SUV captured in the surveillance video was assigned to Deputy Robledo. The poker player told authorities he “triple counted” the casino chips he had when he left Commerce that night, and even showed police the poker income tracker app he used to keep record of his wins and losses.

It wasn’t until the alleged victim arrived at home before noticing he was missing $500 — five $100 chips — from his bag. He then called police to report the missing chips, which he alleges occurred during the traffic stop.

But the poker player was, according to the investigation, uncooperative and stopped responding the emails and phone calls from the sheriff’s department. He specified that he declined any further participation in the case due to fearing retaliation from “deputy gangs,” and felt he would be putting his life in danger if he continued with the accusations.

In July 2021, an officer communicated with the alleged victim and requested a call back to further discuss the incident, but the poker player is said to have never returned the call. Numerous further attempts to make contact in the following months, according to the report, were unsuccessful.

In the end, the DA’s office determined there was “insufficient evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt” that Robledo committed the crime. The main reason for why charges won’t be filed is due to inconsistencies in the alleged victim’s statement and casino surveillance video.

According to the investigation, the poker pro claimed to have left Commerce Casino with 15 white chips ($100 value chips) and that he was missing five of those chips following the traffic stop. But the casino’s surveillance video appears to show he only left the poker room with 13 white chips, investigators claim.

The report on the incident did, however, give a possible reason as to why there was a discrepancy.

“It is possible that (victim’s name) thought he had 15 white chips, when in fact he had 13. It is possible that the additional two white chips (victim’s name) believe he had were accounted for in cash and that Robledo actually stole a combination of chips and cash totaling $500,” the report stated.

But, as the document reads, it’s also possible that the poker player simply miscounted how much money he had on him upon leaving the casino. As such, along with the alleged victim’s refusal to further cooperate with the investigation, the district attorney’s office doesn’t think they can prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

This isn’t the only time a casino chip theft incident occurred involving a Los Angeles poker room. During the infamous jack-four scandal on Hustler Casino Live in September 2022, a staff member of the show admitted to swiping $15,000 worth of chips from Robbi Jade Lew’s stack. Formal charges were never filed against the fired HCL employee, Bryan Sagbigsal.

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The biggest RunGood Poker Series Main Event saw a total of 718 entrants make a massive prize pool of $373,360, guaranteeing a total of 88 spots to be paid out. This $600 Main Event marks the biggest RGPS Main Event at The Horseshoe Casino and Hotel in Tunica.

Starting with a star-studded final table, it was Tunica local Loi Hoang who ended up taking down the tournament for a career-best score of $55,394 as well as his first RGPS Main Event title. Hoang found much success this week after final tabling a total of four side events leading up to this event.

“I think I played my way,” the newly crowned champion remarked. “I took my time, got some luck, and boom.” Hoang wore his emotions on his sleeve today at the final table, jumping for joy when things went his way as every ladder came into focus.

He bested a star-studded field including former champion Tiffany Keathley, WSOPC ring winners Shannon Hamblen and Matthew Higgins, as well as 2003 WSOP Main Event champion Chris Moneymaker who he knocked out four-handed. Hoang now becomes the first RGPS Main Event champion on The Road Trip leg of the tour.

RunGood Poker Series Tunica Main Event Final Table Results

*Denotes a heads-up deal

Final Day Recap

Coming into the day with 88 players, the pace, in the beginning, was quick as Brian “TheGoldenBlazer” Frenzel (85th - $1,008) was eliminated immediately (he went to go win another event to put him atop of the all-time RGPS ring list and second in overall RGPS titles).

Others fell throughout the day like Emily Berglund (71st - $1,157), Trace Henderson (59th - $1,269), defending champion Kevin Broadway (39th - $1,829), WSOP bracelet winner Kyle Cartwright (34th - $1,829), WPT champion Mark Davis (30th - $2,128), Forrest Kollar (18th - $2,950), and Joey Gargiulo (12th - $5,339).

Bubbling the final table was David Lee after he got in his pocket sixes against Matthew Higgins’ pocket nines. That boosted Higgins to the second biggest stack in the tournament, while Lee exited the tournament in tenth place for $6,683.

Final Table Action

Wayne Newcomb came into the final table with a big stack, but quickly lost some pots to Chris Moneymaker and Higgins to put him down in third place. He would reclaim the lead when he would get into a tangle with Dawson Darbouze, who moved all in with ace-queen on a queen high board, only for Newcomb to hold queen-nine for top two. No help was brought to Darbouze, and he became the first casualty of the final table, collecting $6,683 for his ninth-place finish.

Shannon Hamblen had initially tried to bring the final table of nine to eight when Stuart Breakstone got in his ace-queen against Hamblen’s ace-king, but a rivered straight brought the pot to Breakstone leaving Hamblen as the shortest. After Darbouze busted, Hamblen was next on the chopping block when was nearly forced all in from the big blind with queen-ten and failed to improve against Moneymaker’s ace-four. The WSOPC ring winner exited the tournament in eighth place, collecting $8,475 for his efforts.

The final former RGPS Tunica Main Event Champion ended her run in seventh place. Tiffany Keathley came into the final table as the shortest stack in her quest to become a two time RGPS Tunica champion. Her run came to an end when she got in her final few blinds with ace-eight suited against Matthew Higgins’ seven-six suited. Higgins turned a straight to leave her drawing dead and Keathley took home $10,827 for her impressive run.

Rebekah Crosby became the last woman standing after Keathley was eliminated, but with her stack as short as it was, her time to be all in was coming. Before the big blind reached her, she moved her final couple of blinds in with five-three suited which Moneymaker called holding ace-six offsuit. Despite flopping a combination straight draw and flush draw, it bricked out leaving Crosby to collect $14,076 for her sixth-place exit as the last woman standing.

Breakstone’s run came to an end at the hands of Hoang. Breakstone moved all in for a near identical short stack with jack-eight suited, which saw Hoang call with king-seven suited to nearly double. Breakstone shook hands with his cohorts, and took home $18,444 for his fifth-place finish.

Moneymaker came into four-handed play as the chip leader, but he clashed with Hoang in multiple hands which left him going down the counts to the shortest stack. The first saw his nines not hold against Hoang’s ace-king, the second saw Moneymaker river three queens against Hoang’s full house, and the final hand of Moneymaker’s saw him go out against Hoang’s flush. The 2003 WSOP Main Event champion and icon of the poker world went out in fourth place, collecting $24,455 for his best-ever RGPS Main Event finish.

Higgins and Newcomb held roughly even stacks while Hoang held the massive chip lead as three-handed play commenced. Newcomb raised with ace-eight offsuit on the button while Higgins moved all in with ace-ten off, getting a call from Newcomb. Things seemed all set for Higgins to go heads up, with him holding the slight covering stack, but a brutal eight on the river gave the pot to Newcomb while Higgins was forced all in the next hand from the small blind. His eight-three suited could not hold against Newcomb’s five-four offsuit and the four-time WSOPC ring winner ended his run for $32,856.

Once there were just two players left, they came to an agreement. They would do an even chop, but since Hoang held the slight chip lead, he would get the ring as well as the seat. Newcomb accepted the deal as he collected $55,394 for his efforts while Hoang becomes the newest champion of The RunGood Poker Series.

Stay tuned to PokerNews for all updates on The RunGood Poker Series Road Trip. Next weekend will begin the first ever RGPS Baltimore, with an $1,100 Main Event boasting a $200,000 guarantee.

The $80 million guaranteed PokerStars World Championship Of Online Poker (WCOOP) is less than a week away, with the first events shuffling up and dealing on September 10. Poker players from far and wide are putting the finishing touches to their WCOOP preparations, and what better way to gear up for the massive WCOOP than by padding your bankroll with almost $92,000?

Samuel “€urop€an” Vousden is no stranger to winning high-stake poker tournaments. Barely a week goes by, or so it seems, that the Finnish grinder does not come out on top of a major online event. Over the weekend, Vousden triumphed in the PokerStars $5,200 Titans Event, and saw another $91,769 added to his impressive poker earnings tally.

Sixty-eight entries created a $340,000 prize pool, which the final nine players shared. Spare a thought for Michael “imluckbox” Addamo, who saw his latest deep run end in a tenth-place finish and the unwanted title of “bubble boy.”

Addamo’s exit locked in at least $10,600 for the nine surviving players. Pedro “pvigar” Garagnani reeled in that sum after tumbling out in ninth.

Niklas “Lena900” Astedt finished eighth for $12,135, with Poland’s “filusPL” and Peruvian star “caipsa” falling by the wayside after the Swedish superstar and banking prizes worth $16,202 and $21,632, respectively.

Then came the untimely demise of Astedt’s fellow Swede, “Kley.” Their fifth-place finish came with a $28,881 payday.

Pascal “Pass_72” Lefrancois, a champion of this tournament in June 2023, fell in fourth for $38,560 before Leon “RUMUKULUS” Sturm‘s bust-out in third, worth $51,482, sent the Titans Event into the heads-up stage. Sturm enjoyed a profitable Sunday, helped by also finishing second in the $530 Sunday Marathon, fourth in the $1,050 Sunday Warm-Up, and third in the $1,050 Sunday High Roller PKO.

Vousden found himself up against Daniel “SmilleThHero” Smiljkovic in the final battle. Either player would have made a worthy champion, but the night belonged to Vousden, who saw the $91,769 top prize land in his PokerStars account. Smiljkovic collected a still welcomed $68,735 for his efforts.

$5,200 Titans Event Final Table Results

Petrone Punishes the $1,050 Sunday High Roller Field

Uruguay’s Ramiro “ramastar88” Petrone came away with the title of $1,050 Sunday High Roller champion, plus $30,416 in prize money on Sunday night. Petrone’s prize was made up of $11,104 for coming out on top of the 109-strong field, plus an additional $19,312 worth of bounty payments.

As you would expect from a $1,050 buy-in tournament, the final table was stacked.

“Granter7777” of Andorra crashed out in ninth and was joined on the sidelines by such luminaries as Renan “Internett93o” Bruschi, “Phemo,” Norway’s “Kjeppen,” and “leonidus1988” hailing from Montenegro.

Fourth place and $9,571, just shy of a five-figure award, went to Roman “Gogac sniper” Hrabec, with Leon “RUMUKULUS” Sturm bowing out in third for $10,476 in total.

Petrone then defeated Ukraine’s “Ansel21” in the one-on-one battle, and scooped $30,416, resigning his final opponent to an $11,979 consolation prize.

$1,050 Sunday High Roller Final Table Results

Other Notable PokerStars Results

Jans “Graftekkel” Arends found himself in the winner’s enclosure after coming out on top in the $1,050 Sunday Supersonic. There were also Sunday victories for Jerry “Perrymejsen” Odeen, and Estonia’s Juanki “B4NKR0LL3R” Vecino.

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Sebastian Proulx Takes Down the PartyPoker Grand

Canada’s Sebastien Proulx is the latest PartyPoker player to become The Grand Champion after he outlasted 40 opponents in the $1,050 buy-in affair. Proulx turned his $1,050 investment into a $12,226 score after battling through a star-studded final.

The compact field meant only the top eight finishers received some of the $41,125 prize money, and it was Jerry Odeen who was the last soul to bust from the tournament empty-handed.

Josh Hopkins and Marek Sudak were the final table first casualties; they received $2,148 and $2,400 respectively.

UK-based Norwegian superstar Preben Stokkan fell in sixth for $2,700, with recent World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet winner Tom Hall banking $3,117 for his fifth place finish.

Team PartyPoker’s Jaime Staples was going great guns until he found himself void of chips, his fourth place coming ith $4,019 reasons to be happy.

Heads-up was set when British player Wayne Rooke bowed out in third and collected $5,554.

Proulx locked horns with Anders Davidsen of Denmark in a one-on-one battle for the title. The Canadian came out on top, and got his hands on $12,266, leaving the Dane to secure a $9,006 runner-up prize.

The Grand Final Table Results

Five Players Progress to Day 2 of the €1M Gtd Grand Prix Malta

The €1 million guaranteed Grand Prix Malta saw another online Day 1 take place this weekend, and five more players navigated their way through to the live Day 2 at Portomaso Casino, doing so with at least a min-cash in tow.

Thirty PartyPoker players tried their luck on in the online Day 1b, with five of them punching their Day 2 tickets. The UK’s Daniel Oliver (809,604) finished at the top of the pile, with fellow Brits David Murie (348,928) and Joseph Gaynard (127,392) behind him.

Greek grinder Aristeidis Giannatos (125,956) and Malta’s Pavlos Xanthopoulos (88,120) are also safely through to the live portion of the event.

Those five players join the six who navigated their way through Day 1a, which took place in early August.

Klas Klinker (744,184), Hays Antonin (676,078), Andre Grohnert (396,616), Max Gerritsen (132,054), Stewart Alexander (117,304), and Jere Laitinen (83,764) were the survivors on Day 1a.

PartyPoker LIVE MILLIONS Malta runs from September 22 through October 4, featuring the €550 buy-in €1 million guaranteed Grand Prix Malta, a €5,300 buy-in Hydra Entertainment High Roller, and the €3,000 MILLIONS Malta Main Event.

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It was a long final day and night for the last players of the €10,000 EPT High Roller at the 2023 PokerStars European Poker Tour (EPT) at Casino Barcelona.

At 2 a.m., the tournament came to an end with Ka Kwan Lau being the last player standing. He was the one who raised the trophy and won the first-place prize of €910,400.

Lau was the chip leader throughout the final table and managed to eliminate the final six players. So with almost all the chips, he dominated Ouassini Mansouri in a short heads-up battle and beat a total field of 475 entrants.

Vladas Tamasauskas completed the podium ahead of two French players, Eric Sfez who finished fourth and Alexandre Reard in sixth, with Tunisia’s Maher Nouira taking fifth place.

€10,000 EPT High Roller Final Table Results

“It was insanely long”

“This last day was insanely long,” Lau said a few minutes after he won. “We returned with 40 players left on Day 3, which is a lot. So we knew it would be long if we were on the final table. But I didn’t expect it to be that long.”

But even though he was proud of this title, Lau remained humble: “I know it would be hard to reach the first place, as No-Limit Hold’em is not my main game. So I was not very confident when I played. But from the start of Day 1, everything was going very well. I had good situations, and I ran very well during the whole tournament.”

This first-place finish closed a very good festival for Lau, as he finished 31st in the €5,300 EPT Main Event for €36,100. Eliminated on Day 5, he was one of the chip leaders on Day 3. “But on Day 4, I played one hand badly. Then I ran with ace-king into aces, and I lost two flips. So this win compensates for the disappointment of the Main Event.”

Day 3 Action

Forty players out of 475 entrants successfully qualified for Day 3 of the €10,300 EPT High Roller with only one goal: take the first-place prize of €910,400. But this dream quickly turned into a nightmare for Song Xue, Edilson Marques, and PokerStars ambassador Rafael Moraes, who were the first players eliminated of the day.

After Lau showed a crazy bluff with seven-four in a four-bet pot, the second level saw the eliminations of the three Romanian players who made Day 3. Adrian Chiforescu and Adrian Cretu went to the cashier almost at the same time and they were followed by Razvan Belea, who couldn’t win his last flip to take another prestigious EPT tournament this year, after he won EPT Paris in February.

The two other EPT champions in the field didn’t get much further, as Patrik Antonius ran into a set to finish 28th (€25,550), and Dominik Panka (23rd, €33,800) was eliminated shortly after the three table redraw.

A host of bust outs then set up the final table and it was one of the shortest stacks, Nicholas Palma, who missed out on making the final nine. He lost a flip to finish tenth for €71,050.

The first final table elimination would take place after two more hours of play. Francesco Pilato’s tournament finally ended in ninth place (€85,250). Minutes later, Toby Joyce was out of the tournament too (8th - €109,450).

Lau then went on a heater at the right time and sent Aleksandr Shevliakov, Reard, Nouira, Sfez, Tamasauskas to the wrong side of the rail in a quick fashion. Lau then sealed the win on the second hand of heads-up.