Bicycle Casino

The Bicycle Hotel & Casino
Address	888 Bicycle Casino Drive Bell Gardens, CA 90201
Opening date	November 30, 1984
Casino type	Land
Previous names	The Bicycle Casino
Renovated in	2015 (Hotel Addition)
Website	http://www.thebike.com/

The Bicycle Hotel & Casino is a poker cardroom in California.

Founded by George Hardie Sr. in 1984, located in Bell Gardens, California, The Bicycle Casino offers a selection of poker games and Asian games, with a wide range of limits. The casino features games including: Blackjack, Texas Hold 'Em, Seven Card Stud, Omaha hold 'em, Mexican Poker, Pai Gow Poker, Three Card Poker and Baccarat (card game).

Financing to build the original Bicycle Club casino was provided by Sam Gilbert, who allegedly used money partially obtained from laundering drug money. The casino is home to the Legends of Poker, a tournament series established in 1995 that now includes a stop on the World Poker Tour. Prior to the Legends, the casino's main tournament series was called the Diamond Jim Brady.

In 1987, Sam Gilbert was the subject of a federal investigation into money laundering and racketeering charges. According to the investigation, a scheme to launder the money received from smuggling marijuana was put together to finance the construction of the Bicycle Casino in Bell Gardens, California. According to one criminal complaint,

Gilbert was indicted in Miami 4 days after his death. His son Michael also was indicted.

The U.S. Government seized the casino in April, 1990, after a jury found that $12 million of the $22 million used in its construction came from Florida drug smugglers. The club's profits were frozen and placed in a special U.S. marshal account until the court held civil hearing to determine which partners knew that the club was built with drug money.

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Wikipedia