Full Tilt Poker is under investigation by a federal grand jury

Full Tilt Poker is one of the largest poker websites around, however, according to the Financial Times they are now under investigation for money laundering charges

The FT thought that money laundering charges would be attractive for the government as "they would compel cooperation from authorities even in countries where gambling is legal."

However, according to Law Professor Joe Kelly a successful prosecution in these kinds of cases can be very difficult. He said that "In the past, the government has been unsuccessful prosecuting under the Illegal Gambling Business Act (IGBA), which is why they always use the Wire Act. But if there's no sports betting, they'll likely have to use IGBA. And under IGBA, there must be a violation of state law before (federal prosecution) comes into play, so the question is 'Is poker in violation of the New York State law?'"
That is not an easy question to answer as it depends on whether chance is the predominant factor in poker. This is a question which has already occupied hours of court time in the past without a status quo being formed.

Eric Jackson is representing Lederer, Ferguson and a software company connected to Full Tilt. He told the FT that his clients are not aware of any grand jury investigation and did not have any comment. The U.S. Attorney in New York also refused to comment.