Two men have been sentenced for their involvement in an unlicensed gambling den on an industrial estate in Cardiff.
Noor Rassam, 29, and Panayiotis Karayiannis, 30, both from Pontprennau, Cardiff, operated illegal poker games from an upstairs room in an industrial unit in Splott between August 2022 and February 2024.
The room had been fitted out with six poker tables, a large prize wheel, seating areas, and fridges stocked with drinks and snacks.
On 2 October, the pair appeared at Cardiff Crown Court for possessing and transferring criminal funds obtained by running the den and received a suspended sentence. A Proceeds of Crime Act hearing has been set for April next year.
The illegal poker games were available to join both in-person and online and were promoted through WhatsApp messages, according to Tarian, the Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU) for southern Wales.
The unit said organisers actively promoted the illegal poker games to people involved in serious crime, including drug dealers and organised crime groups, helping to facilitate further criminal activity.
The online games were hosted through a subscription-based poker application under the account name Fish Tank Online, while the in-person events were initially advertised as Ding Ding Poker before later being rebranded as Fish Tank Poker Cardiff.
The industrial unit was accessed through a fire exit and monitored by CCTV cameras controlled by Rassam and Karayiannis.
Inside the building there was an office containing gambling paraphernalia, including poker chips, tokens and records detailing money paid and owed. The room also featured a cashier's window protected by Perspex, with a small opening for financial transactions.
Investigators found that Rassam received approximately £260,000 in third-party payments while the venue was operating, while Karayiannis received around £124,000. Both accounts showed numerous transactions referencing "poker."
The crime came to light after intelligence was received by the Gambling Commission and passed on to Tarian ROCU.
In February 2024 warrants were executed and both men were arrested following an investigation. Officers seized cash, documentation, digital devices and other high-value items.
Officers also established that the pair profited from the games by taking a commission from each poker hand, known within the industry as "the rake", rather than by directly wagering against players.
Det Con Charles Lan, of Tarian ROCU, said the pair generated "substantial profits" from the illegal gambling business, which was never "declared for tax purposes".
Lan said: "Their criminal enterprise provided them with significant personal benefits, funding a lavish lifestyle that included foreign holidays and other high-value spending."
He said individuals had lost "significant sums of money" taking part in the poker games, "with some becoming indebted to the organisers".
"Unlike legitimate gambling operators, there were no safeguards in place to identify or support vulnerable people, nor any measures to protect those experiencing gambling addiction."
Both Rassam and Karayiannis changed their pleas to guilty to offences of possessing and transferring criminal property, contrary to the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, on the first day of their trial at Cardiff Crown Court.
They were sentenced to three years in prison, suspended for three years.
Lan said the sentence showed that unlicensed gambling was not a "victimless offence" and warned those who profit from it while ignoring safeguards designed to protect people "can expect to be brought before the courts".
Sue Young, Gambling Commission executive director of operations, said: "This case emerged after we received information about an illegal gambling den. The message is clear - if you run an illegal casino, there will be a tip-off, you will be caught, and there will be significant consequences.
"We will continue to work with partners and take action against those who run illegal gambling operations in Great Britain."