Just for the record, I hate scam artists and anybody whose main goal in life is to defraud people out of their money. That being said, I don’t really like Samuel McMaster Jr. who made off with a reported $440,000 after scamming elderly and retired people out of their hard-earned money. On the other hand, I guess I can’t hate McMaster too much since he is a fellow poker player.
Formerly an insurance agent, McMaster is a self-proclaimed poker pro who must not have been living it up on the tables since he set up a scheme where he took money from old people in exchange for high returns on promissory notes. Only there was no promise with these notes because McMaster simply used the money to fund his own habits. One of the things he did with the $440k was enter poker tournaments, which may have saved him when it came time for sentencing.
After being apprehended and taken to court, a New Mexico judge said that McMaster could reduce his 12-year prison sentence provided he earn enough money playing poker to pay back the defrauded “customers.” So what is the sum he must earn to pay back the people he scammed? According to the judge, McMaster needs to make payments of $7,500 a month to pay back those he scammed. And if he falls behind by just two payments, he’s going to prison right away!
Now I’m not saying that McMaster can’t make the payments, but I’ve never even heard of him when it comes to poker so he is going to have to play some pretty damn good cards to avoid jail. And seeing as how $7,500 a month adds up to $90k a year (which doesn’t include living expenses), I’d say Samuel McMaster has a pretty tough road ahead of him. And it shouldn’t be any other way for his con man!
