Eleven months after Malaysian businessman and high-stakes poker player Paul Phua, who plays online under the moniker "MalACEsia," was arrested with seven others in Las Vegas following an illegal betting operation involving the 2014 FIFA World Cup, U.S. District Judge Andrew Gordon has decided to dismiss the case.
As the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports, Judge Gordon's decision came after the prosecutors admitted they no longer had the evidence needed for a trial, that was supposed to begin later this month, against Phua.
On July 9, 2014, Phua, together with his 22-year-old son Darren Wai Kit Phua, Chinese businessman and Macau high-stakes regular Sen Chen (Richard) Yong and his son Wai Kin Yong — along with four more Chinese and Malaysian nationals — were arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in an operation that took place at Ceasars Palace in Las Vegas.