While you're totally right that there is a lot of victim blaming that happens around the forum, there is another side of this that you're missing. You travel from one cool euro city to the next, cross a few national borders, and screw up in minor fashion... it is no big deal. Notice how our OP said a few times, "but I'm only a student" expecting people to smile and nod and tell him to do better next time?

Basically the thing they nabbed him for is silly for a number of reasons, especially the non-inflation adjusted sum randomly picked to catch drug dealers. Oddly, getting picked up as a drug dealer can be serious business. (I know, he had zero drugs. People unfairly assume only dealers have tons of unreported cash.) Check out this for a list of places you can be put to death as a drug dealer. China, Malaysia, and Singapore are all places fun-loving poker players might visit.

The thing that hits me is that he knew he didn't know, and people he asked provided terrible advice that basically was "structure your cash around your traveling party to avoid customs". That's where he became a victim, of bad advice. As he said, he had only left his home country once or twice and didn't know. There are places on Earth where the next result of what would be a stern lecture or a minor fine that becomes
So when our OP was upset that Stars or his own embassy or the UN didn't do more, that's what happens sometimes in foreign places. To me, it sucks that his friends didn't give him better advice.

Pocket full of cash as a citizen of the world enjoying adventure as you go is one thing. There are places where people are srsbzness unreasonable about stuff that most of us think silly/minor. It might be worth picking up a travel book, especially if you're from a more civilized part of the world. It sucks he went through that, and the story illuminates the consequences of a minor mistake. However, the people saying "I wouldn't lightly screw around with a government official in the 3rd world" aren't just being jerks.

Amazing how many *******s have no empathy for anyone because they naively violated a law.

You can be legally right and still be an *******.

Pater familias, a member of the inquisition, a white slave owner or a contemporary muslim did not/do not see nothing wrong wit those laws either.
Just as you do not see with customs and tax law.

That does not make them right, moral and non-tyranical.

We may agree that the degree of opression is different in particular cases but different levels of the same principle do not alter the principle itself.

So yes examples do hold up.

And to use your logic:
"If you do not like to be a slave maybe you should have paid better attention not to be born in Louisiana in 1829."
"IF you dont like our pious priests torturing you you should have ran for the hills witch."
"If you want to show your new lipstick bitch maybe you should not live in Yemen"

I know PokerStars is evil now, but OP said this happened a while ago back when Stars was the best business on the planet.

I think it's useless to try to hold PokerStars accountable here. A law was broken in a country that they host an event in. What are they supposed to do after the fact?

Horrible experience. Your post really did put a picture of a real life Prison Break jail in my mind. We're you only 18 at the time? Maybe Stars should put a 21 age limit on these international events. I feel like teenagers are way more likely to find themselves in these type of situations.

If the cops were just there to fleece, OP should have had his passport and his itinerary to back up the fact his winnings were tax free in his country. Just declare the full amount and move on with it.

A lot of idiots itt who hasn`t done some minor stupid thing as a young man ?

OPis clerly intelligent and an empathic human being gl man

Moral of the story?

Don't lie on a customs declaration form and then sign it.

Traveling 101.

Sick story thanks for sharing. Judging by your interactions with the other prisoners in the refugee camp, i'd say they were proly more decent humans than the scums in the thread that think your punishment was justified because you broke a law. Def never going to PCA again.

Moral of story?

Horrible law with corrupt people enforcing it.

Freedom 101.

Why specifically the PCA?

Are you still friends with your traveling partner

It was actually because the lawyer I spoke to in the Bahamas told me to say that, and I said that in the OP.

I said that I didn't expect Stars to do anything, and I really didn't, I was upset because I just went through the worst experience of my life and they called to pretty much just make sure it's not going to come back on them.

I was quite happy with the UN, they were really helpful and proactive.

I was unhappy with my country's embassy because there was 1 other person from my country who had been in there for about a month because they had their passport and wallet stolen and they were being held in the refugee camp because they didn't have any money to buy a plane ticket home, and they didn't have contact with anyone who could help them out. When I got back home, I contacted my embassy, they knew about his case, they knew that he needed a plane ticket bought to speed up his return. They said they were waiting to get the approval to allocate funds to buy him his ticket. I said I will buy his ticket, just get him out of there ASAP. They called me back a couple days later and said they weren't allowed to do that because I wasn't a relative or something, and asked if I would like to donate the money to them instead. So YES I was a little unhappy that they didn't do more.

OP - thanks for sharing this story.

I have been vacationing at Atlantis three times in the last five years but never during the PCA. I remember one trip I won $ from their casino. I was flying back w 18k. I had my gf hold 9k and never really think much about the severity of it. We got thru custom w/o issue. Your story definitely will help others from making the same mistakes and allowing these corrupt scumb@gs stealing our $.

No that's not what I said and you probably know that. This discussion is pointless in this context, and I am the first to admit there are things going terribly wrong with a lot of governments. But there are valid reasons why governments need tax money and there have to be mechanisms in place to hinder tax evasion. If you regard that as oppression you have to look out for some anarchy state. See how well that works.

Back on topic the post of DougL hits the nail on the head

Heh, unfortunately we haven't spoken in a couple years.

Damn. That is crazy.

Did any other poker players besides you two get thrown in jail or a "dorm"? Sounds like a **** place to have a poker tournament, I would start a boycott if I was a pro MTT player.

I had a couple of shady experiences with cops in Cabo that made me not really want to be there. Can only imagine it would have been worse if I had a decent amount of money on me. There always seems to be a bit of risk with being a gringo in poorer countries, but that adds to the vibe of some places I guess.

Wtf. All the poker players coming out of the woodwork now admitting to deceiving customs by not declaring truthfully the amount of money that belongs to them.

Seriously, are you guys stupid or what?

Totally! That was me. Never would have thought twice if I had gotten through, didn't have any idea of the consequences. I believe I thought that if I checked the wrong box and they found out, they would just let me fill out another form haha.

Question for those who know...

What happens if you declare 18k cash on custom form?
And they bring you to the room where they make you count the cash in front of them and the amount is a bit off (i.e. off by $100).

Will that give them justification to detain and confiscate your $?
What if you have exactly $18k and they find an extra $20 in your pocket?

PS needs to pass out pamphlet at cashier cage to advise all players that during the PCA... local authorities are on a witch hunt for cash.

#absolutelyDisgusting

and they wonder why theyre getting pulled aside when everyone in their group has varying amounts all under the $10,000 threshold

Naw. I think that for anyone else who gets caught not declaring their experience would end at the courthouse, I just got 1-outed.

You don't actually declare an amount on the form, you just check over $10k or under $10k, then they bring you back and you count it. The only situation where being off a bit could matter is if it's the difference between being under $10k and over $10k when you declared being under.

Thanks for clearing that up.
I didn't quite remember if you have to state an amount over 10k.

I remember a few years back... I was heading to Punta Cana poker Classic. I was boarding my flight at JFK (New York). Was on the gangway to the plane when a custom agent ask me reason for my travel. I told her I am going there for a poker tournament. She ask how much cash I was carrying. Told her 7k. She made me take out the $ and counted in front of her (on the gangway leading to the plane while other passengers were staring and walking pass me). Afterward, I was allow to get on the plane. I guess if it was the other way around... I would have to lose the 7k because of some made up law before I can board my flight.

For all those that think that this is due to this being in a "third world country," you owe it to yourself to google "civil asset forfeiture" laws. Many poker players have had varying sums of money taken from them in the USA. No evidence of a crime is needed, more than officer suspicion. And getting your money back is nearly impossible.

Sentence of the day

And i dont even think he did anything wrong. If youve not travelled much and a bunch of poker friends who have all say its fine to split the money its hardly a mistake to trust them. Besides i dont see any moral problem with splitting the money to save some time.

The blame question in general is making me sick, who cares whos fault something is, most of the time its the circumstances/randomness that ****s up and instead of pinpointing blame on someone we focus on learning from the experience and try to make it such that things like this doesnt happen to anyone again.

@OP In hindsight do you think you would have been better off pleading not guilty?