MARSHALL — A rural Marshall man pleaded not guilty to illegal gambling charges in Lyon County District Court on Tuesday.
A criminal complaint alleges that in 2020 Lucas Harland Christoffer, 32, ran a Facebook page and website for online poker tournaments, which are illegal in Minnesota.
Court records said Christoffer appeared in court Tuesday on two counts of participating in the income of an electronic gambling place.
According to the criminal complaint, in March 2020 an agent of the Alcohol and Gaming Enforcement Division of the Minnesota Department of Public Safety was investigating a private Facebook group that hosted online poker games in Minnesota. Christoffer created the Facebook group, the complaint alleges. The agent requested to join the Facebook group under an alias, and observed Christoffer advertising a website with online poker tournaments where members would pay to play, the complaint alleges. Payouts were as high as $2,000 for some games, the complaint alleges.
The investigating agent obtained search warrants for the financial information on PayPal and Venmo accounts Christoffer used for payment for the tournaments, as well as for a forensic examination of Christoffer’s cell phone, the complaint said. The phone records confirmed he was running an illegal gambling operation, the complaint alleges.
Christoffer was formally charged in May 2022, court records said.
At Tuesday’s hearing, Christoffer entered a not guilty plea, court records said. Christoffer’s attorney said Tuesday that the case was nearing an agreement, court records said. A scheduling conference was set for Oct. 4.
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