BML SPORTS? are they out of business

[scrim67]

Each day that passes makes in more apparent that my money is gone with BML Sports.

I have a copy of the wire I sent them in November.

It has the name of J.M. Rubenia S.A. on it as the benficiary.

Anyone know where he is?

Help!!!

 

[jyde]

Why on earth did you chose to play there? They've been scamming players for as long as anyone can remember.

 

[scrim67]

Why on earth did you chose to play there? They've been scamming players for as long as anyone can remember.

when i did my research two years ago I didn't come across anything negative.

live and learn i guess.

 

[pokeraddict]

According to sports911 they are closed

 

[jerryg]

It has the name of J.M. Rubenia S.A. on it as the benficiary.

Anyone know where he is?

The "S.A." denotes that "J.M. Rubenia" is a private-stock based corporation. It's basically like saying "J.M. Rubenia, Inc."

If they are truly closed, I'm not sure how the normal approach would play into them. If there are enough complaintants, it may be worth filing suit collectively, before they leave the country entirely, but I do not know how many people are involved in this or if all of them keep good enough records on their accounts to produce viable documentation.

 

[jetset]

Scrim, tyhe Costa Rican authorities are pretty useless as a so-called licensing organisation and you will find it hard to pursue these crooks through official channels.

However there are several good, honest journalists in that country who investigate and expose scam artists like BML as a matter of national pride. Jay Brodell, the editor of AM Costa Rica is one of them (

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) and he may be able to add to your information.

The 'Meister here has also had a few run-ins with BML, and you might like to search the archives here for more on these dweebs.

And the webmaster at 911, Chris Costigan knows a lot of people on the sportsbook side of the industry and might be worth approaching too.

But the bottom line is that you unfortunately fell in with one of the real baddies out there, and they are probably starting up under a different name and software right now having sunk the BML ship.

 

[The Dude]

Hi jerryg - welcome back!

And for scrim67 - bummer - not too much you can do here. I've warned and I've warned and I've warned about these guys. Too bad you weren't a subscriber to my newsletter when in December I revealed their plan to "vanish" after the Superbowl. https://www.casinomeister.com/static/newsletter/2003/4december2003.html (scroll down to "Joke of the Week").

...even though BML just purchased about $50,000 worth of new software, they aren't planning to pay their players. In my opinion, for whatever it's worth, I believe they are trying to hold off paying anyone until after football season...then take a trip in to the unknown void of cyberspace, perhaps joining Fortyplus casino on some tropical island in the Caribbean Sea. That's my extrapolation.

That's pretty much what happened. I have some sources that have pointed fingers at a Sportsbook that has appeared with apparently the same software. I'm still checking into this at the moment. If they've resurfaced as another piece of crap website, this is good. I know of some people who BML crossed, and they are looking for these BML fraudsters.

 

[jerryg]

Thanks Bryan,

I must have missed that December newsletter (I try to read them all when I can), but it looks like you nailed that one right on the head. I do remember seeing their name tossed back and forth for a very long time, and that alone is enough to make me suspicious of them, at least makes them worth a closer look.

Jetset, as far as persuing them through traditional channels, I'm not so sure that's pointless in CR. Most of my experience with the sportsbooks there has been idle, polite conversation. Most of my experience there has been with people on the legal and political side of the country.

Those people seem to be split into two camps. One side would like to see the industry gone from the country, and would jump all over something like this. The other side wants to legitimize the industry, and they too (some of them anyway) would also jump all over this. Despite the lack of a special license for gaming businesses, they do have a desire to protect the reputation of their country. Sportsbooks in Costa Rica provide over 4,500 entry level jobs to citizens, pay higher wages than a lot of places, and (most importantly) all of their revenues are "fresh money" that is generated from abroad and brought into the country.

The only hang up is that going after them in this manner requires them to still be in the country. If he has skipped the country and ran to Belize or Panama or some other location, there is little that the authorities there can do. However, if it is found that he is still there, let me know and I will pull together some contact information for people who can provide some assistance in the matter.


P.S. My post count is about as much of a joke as BML's actions. I guess maybe I shouldn't have made all of my posts in the OPA forums way back when, or at least popped back in here and there to make a quick point or two.

 

[jetset]

"Jetset, as far as persuing them through traditional channels, I'm not so sure that's pointless in CR."

Sorry, I don't agree. I've tried on a number of occasions to assist players by trying to get the so-called business licensing officials in that country to accept some sort of responsibility to put pressure on a *licensee* and it has always been a frustrating ride to nowhere despite all the good intentions the various politicos over there have voiced about this *jurisdiction*. Hence my claim that (in my experience) CR is a useless excuse for any sort of *business" license that casinos tout as gambling licensing.

If they are serious about Internet gambling licensing those guys need to get their act together and put in place a meaningful regulatory framework instead of waffling about it as has been the case for the last several years. And issuing BS "business" licenses knowing that the gambling operations are passing them off as gambling licenses is pretty suspect in my eyes, too.

But Scrim, anything that might help is worth exploring so I suggest you contact Jerry here and see if his contacts can assist you as he points out in his concluding paragraph.

BTW - again in my experience Antigua is not much use either. Their "licensing" officials rock up at international conferences, make important sounding speeches and network about their "genuine" regulation but ignore communications when the going gets tough - the Odds On software providers have offices there yet, during the Forty Plus debacle when players needed some pressure from officialdom to get things moving they were spectacularly uninterested.

 

[jerryg]

If they are serious about Internet gambling licensing those guys need to get their act together and put in place a meaningful regulatory framework instead of waffling about it as has been the case for the last several years. And issuing BS "business" licenses knowing that the gambling operations are passing them off as gambling licenses is pretty suspect in my eyes, too.

I'd definitely agree with that. The people I have had the most contact with are those who are pushing for a formal regulatory body, not only in reference to internet gaming, but also to have tighter regulatory control for the local casinos (of which there are many). It is definitely needed, but at the same time, the sportsbooks are really among the wealthiest business in CR (the large ones anyway), and in a country that poor, money talks and can most definitely slow down the wheels of progress.

Scrim, should you wish to send me a PM, I'll get you the contact information for an attorney I have used extensively there who works with a large number of politicians. Surely he can give you a reasonable assessment of what you can expect. If you like, I can also contact some other people who I know but am not comfortable giving out their information. But again, this is really aggregate upon them having some form of presence still in the country - whether that's their actual person, bank accounts, office assets, etc. There was one case there a couple of years ago where the assets (fixed and monetary) of one sportsbook were frozen until they paid monies owed to an employee or contractor or something, so it is not totally without hope.

 

[jerryg]

BTW - again in my experience Antigua is not much use either.

I think that is true of the majority of locations that license the business. Kahnawakee is another place where I have seen a lot of people who had filed complaints in the past and were more or less brushed off. It seems like even the countries who have taken steps to have an official licensing process are very weak on the enforcement aspects. Personally, I have never seen an enforcement division of any licensing/regulatory body in any of these places, and when you read the rules and regulations, enforcement is probably the least extensive portion, when it should be the most extensive. Some countries do not even touch on it at all.

 

[jimithing_41]

BML is horrible.

Scrim,

I had a balance of $6100 with those creeps from BML when they closed their doors. I wish I had more documentation, but I did get a snapshot of my account balance when it was around $4700... but I seriously doubt that will help me retrieve a dime from these punks. Let me know if you plan on filing any lawsuits or come across a good way to get back at these guys. There are a few others that have emailed me in the last couple of months that would be up for it too. My surfer buddies always say how cool Costa Rica is... I doubt I'll ever look at that country in the same way... BML is unethical and making a bad name for the country. Email me at jimithing_41@hotmail.com if you can think of any solutions to our problem.

Thanks and good luck.

 

[scrim67]

bml scammers?!

hi jim,

i feel your pain!

i'll keep you posted if I hear of any further developments.

mike