LOS ANGELES — Members of the notoriously brutal Russian mob took part in multi-million dollar underground Hollywood poker games involving a number of A-List actors.
In a display of how the mobsters meant business, Star magazine and RadarOnline.com reported today that Molly Bloom, the 33-year-old ringleader behind the illegal ring, was roughed up in 2009 after fleeing Los Angeles to New York.
Insiders connected to the game speculate that the mob may be responsible for her beating, sources told Star magazine.
Last week, Star magazine reported that “Spider-Man” star Tobey Maguire is among over a dozen Hollywood celebrities being sued in connection with an illegal gambling ring that ran high-stakes underground poker games in Beverly Hills.
‘SPIDER-MAN’ STAR TOBEY MAGUIRE SUED OVER ILLEGAL POKER WINNINGS: REPORT
Other bold face names that took part included billionaire businessman Alex Gores, “The Notebook” director Nick Cassavetes, “Welcome Back, Kotter” star Gabe Kaplan, Paris Hilton’s infamous sex tape partner, Rick Salomon, record label owner Cody Leibel and Las Vegas nightlife entrepreneur Andrew Sasson.
“It an active investigation for sure,” said one law enforcement source.
Brad Ruderman, former CEO of Ruderman Capital Partners, settled his debts with stolen money, lawsuits filed against Maguire and others alleged.
When the LA games ended in 2009, Bloom relocated to Manhattan to establish a similar high stakes poker scene for Wall Street stock brokers.
Local Russian mobsters are said to have eventually joined in, sources told Star.
“Molly admitted to friends that she was assaulted while in New York and even had photographs of herself bloody and bruised to prove it,” one of her friends told the magazine. “Molly told one friend that she believes the bashing has something to do with mobsters.”
Some insiders believe the mafia wanted to intimidate Bloom before she faced questions from the feds.
Bloom’s lawyer Ronald Richards had “no comment” on the claim that she had turned into an informant.
In a recent deposition for the lawsuit filed by Ruderman’s victims, obtained exclusively by Star, Bloom refused to detail if she was still operating the poker games in New York.
“If you are going to get into present day poker games in New York,” said Richards, adding, “I’m going to have her assert the Fifth [Amendment] on every single question.”
The poker games were “exclusive events, by invitation only, and that there was a regular roster of players consisting of wealthy celebrities, entrepreneurs, attorneys and businessmen,” according to the lawsuit filed against Maguire in the United States Bankruptcy Court in Los Angeles.
Ruderman lost $311,300 to Maguire, including one losing hand of $110,000, on July 30, 2007, according to court papers.
“As part of the scheme, funds invested in [Ruderman] were transferred to persons such as [Maguire], who received the funds on account of Ruderman’s gambling losses and on account of Defendant’s gambling winnings,” according to the lawsuit.
In their attempt to win back Ruderman’s losses, the trustee claims Maguire is “not entitled to receive the transfers from [Ruderman], which transfers were compromised of improperly-diverted investor funds.”
In a deposition of the alleged ringleader of the operation, which took in tens of millions of dollars beginning in 2006 through 2009, Maguire is described as a “very, very frequent player,” in the games, which ended in 2009.
Under California law, it is against the law for money to be won at underground poker clubs. None of the participants are under criminal investigation.
With AP