The Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes have stopped their involvement with the multi-million dollar PokerTribes.com, a website to offer online gambling in Oklahoma.
The tribes incoming Governor Eddie Hamilton recently replaced several high-ranking casino personnel and an attorney general who were involved in PokerTribes.com. The tribe paid $9.4 million for the website, which isn’t currently active, according to the Oklahoman newspaper.
Hamilton also instructed tribal attorneys to stop pursuing a lawsuit seeking federal approval to operate the site.
Hamilton has said the changes were not related to the website but instead represent a “shift in business and tribal strategy and philosophy,” according to published reports. Hamilton said the tribe is exploring if it can recoup any of its original investment in the site.
The tribe paid Universal Entertainment Group $9.4 million for PokerTribes.com, which was originally available to players in the U.S. until Oklahoma intervened. Gov. Mary Fallin later agreed to allow the website to operate only with international players, with the state receiving a percentage of the revenue, according to the Oklahoman.
However, the U.S. Department of the Interior then ruled that the state could not make such an agreement. That led to the tribe filing its legal challenge.
The Concho, Oklahoma-based tribe of 12,000 members operates four casinos—two Lucky Star casinos in Concho and Clinton, and two Feather Warrior casinos in Watonga and Canton.
