FULL TILT POKER RESPONDS TO BLACK FRIDAY CHARGES

Full Tilt Poker has issued a response to Friday's dramatic crackdown on U.S. online poker. The site has suspended real-money play for U.S. players but insists it has done nothing wrong.

Full Tilt Poker has responded to the U.S. Department of Justice's indictment on Friday, issuing a statement today on several websites and blogs.

Full Tilt was among the sites who were forced to shut down as a result of the U.S. authorities crackdown on online poker, and the site has as a result since moved to Fulltiltpoker.eu.

Here, real-money play continues for all non-American players, while it for now remains uncertain what will happen in the States in the wake of the indictment, the shutdowns and the chaos that ensued the so-called "Black Friday".

Two of Full Tilt Poker's executives, Raymond Bitar and Nelson Burtnick, were among the eleven people mentioned in the 50-page indictment unsealed by the Department of Justice and the FBI on Friday, and they will now face charges of among other things money laundry, illegal gambling and bank fraud.

Full Tilt Poker, however, insists that neither site or employees have done anything wrong and that the site believes online poker is legal.

"Full Tilt Poker is saddened by today's charges against its CEO Raymond Bitar and offers its full support to Mr. Bitar and Nelson Burtnick," the statement read.

"Online poker is a game of skill enjoyed by tens of millions of people in the United States and across the world. And, Full Tilt Poker remains committed as ever to preserving the rights of those players to play the game they love online."

"Bitar and Full Tilt Poker believe online poker is legal - a position also taken by some of the best legal minds in the United States. Full Tilt Poker is, and has always been committed to preserving the integrity of the game and abiding by the law."

PokerStars founder Isai Scheinberg was also among the names mentioned in the indictment, but he and PokerStars have yet to make an official statement on the issue.

PokerStars has nonetheless already taken steps similar to this of Full Tilt, among other things suspending real-money play in the United States and moving to the PokerStars.eu domain.