This story was last updated March 17, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. (CST)
By Evert Caldwell, Rounder Life News Team
Soon after Mike Postle was accused of cheating in the livestream poker show at Stones Gambling Hall in Citrus Heights, CA., Tournament Director Justin Kuraitis was implicated as a possible accomplice. Kuraitis, who oversaw the production, was eventually named as a defendant in the class action lawsuit along with Postle and Stones Gambling Hall.
Update : Justin Kuraitis responds to lawsuit, joins in Stones’ “Motion To Dismiss”.
On October 2, 2019, shortly after the cheating allegations were made public, a tweet from “whistleblower” Veronica Brill was posted on the TwoPlusTwo poker forum by Halo_P1, implying Kuraitis was involved in some way. The tweet states, “The guy who runs Stones live went to Vegas to work at the wsop Someone also took a break from crushing live streams during that time”.
Adding to suspicions, “internet sleuths” on TwoPlusTwo uncovered that Postle had a huge loss during the time Kuraitis was out of town ($5,700) in the June 15, 2019 session. With the evidence suggesting Postle cut back on his play, and lost, the conspiracy theories implicating Kuraitis took off.
Conspiracy Allegations Implicating Kuraitis Spread
On October 3rd, 2019 on the Cracking Aces podcast, described as “Poker for @BarstoolSports“, co-host Nate aka @barstoolnate tells Joey Ingram, “That guy who happened to be in Vegas during Mike’s two losing sessions, who works for the casino, he’s very involved in it…” (Full podcast)
“Here’s my theory. This is a smaller, lesser known poker room. They’re trying to drum up advertising. They’re trying to get bigger profile names to come play their game. What’s the best way to do it in today’s day and age ? Crazy sick action and memes. They decided to use this guy who’s already kind of well known for playing a bit out of line, and they said, ‘Hey, are you in on this or you’re out ?’ Maybe this guy actually was in debt and he had no choice. They said you’re going to be our guy.
That guy who happened to be in Vegas during Mike’s two losing sessions, who works for the casino, he’s very involved in it, and they come up with a plan to drum up interest to come play on the stream. Maybe there’s incentives tied to how many people watch the stream. Maybe there’s incentives to play higher games on stream than just playing 1-3 or 5-5, but this was their plan. It was almost Fyre Fest like, where it’s like ‘We’re gonna be legends…this is going to be epic’, and they f#n went through with it and it worked…”
When “The Poker Authority” Reports It, People Listen*
On October 4, 2019 on cardplayer.com the Card Player News Team reported, “Internet sleuths have discovered that Kuraitis was present for most, if not all of Postle’s winning sessions. In fact, a two-month stretch where he was in Las Vegas lines up well with a small downswing and limited playing schedule from Postle.”
Image posted by Joeyrodsx3 on TwoPlusTwo thread – “Mike Postle Cheating Allegations” 
The credibility given to the allegations by one of the most trusted news sources in the industry was a devastating blow to Kuraitis. Spun from a tweet by Brill, the narrative gained traction and with the added authenticity, now seemed plausible. Since then, the narrative has been repeated by just about every media outlet covering the scandal.
Justin Kuraitis had been branded a cheat.
The investigating “internet sleuths, who posted under handles like Joeyrodsx3, BamaWillBG, dhubermex, and pokervangelist, have been credited with compiling much of the “evidence” in the case thus far. Besides pointing out that Kuraitis “was present for most, if not all of Postle’s winning sessions”, they also presented the PotRipper win rate graph, and possible cheating methods such as bone conduction headphones used to transmit information, a morse code buzzing system, and a capturing device in his (Postle) key fob used to identify cards.
The time period introduced by sleuths as evidence pointing to a conspiracy involving Kuraitis, was included and referenced in the class action lawsuit filed on behalf of the Plaintiffs by Mac VerStandig.
The lawsuit states, “While there are a handful of Stones Live Poker sessions in which Mr. Postle did not make money, and in which he played in a sub-optimal manner, the Plaintiffs have information and a belief that such sessions correlate to the absence of Mr. Postle’s suspected chief confederate, John Doe 1, and the Plaintiffs further allege Mr. Postle’s participation in Stones Live Poker games was uncharacteristically rare – in contrast to his normal schedule when the person the Plaintiffs believe to be John Doe 1 was absent from the Sacramento area.”
Although the complaint doesn’t actually name Kuraitis when it mentions the “absence of Mr. Postle’s chief confederate”, Kuraitis was slyly referenced as the prime suspect in an interview Jamie Kerstetter and Marle Cordeiro hosted with attorney Mac VerStandig on The RakeE007 (November 4, 2019). In the interview Kerstetter (at 10:25) suggests ‘Dustin Mengitis’ could be the co-conspirator.
“Leaders” in the “poker community” also pegged Kuraitis as that guy.
The lawsuit which lists 68 streams Postle played, excludes six sessions (June 1, 3, 15, 17, and July 6 and 8) which coincide with the timeframe Kuraitis attended the 2019 WSOP. During his absence, the Gumpnstein data (presented by Joey Ingram on October 7, 2019), shows Postle with $1,608 in profits in those six sessions, including the $5,916 loss on June 15 (John S. showed a $5,700 loss).
Kuraitis Out Of Town During Six Additional Streams
Despite literally thousands of people looking for ways to tie Kuraitis to the alleged cheating, little if no contradictory evidence has been presented on his behalf. A simple investigation of Kuraitis’ travel schedule posted on his facebook page shows he was out of town on at least three other occasions, besides those alluded to in the lawsuit.
The trips not being reported, caused him to be absent for six additional streams in which Postle played. During one of those streams, on July 31, 2019, while Kuraitis was in Sydney, Australia, Postle had one of his biggest wins ever, booking a $9,000 profit (according to both the John S. and Gumpnstein charts).
On January 9, 2019 Postle reportedly had another big win ($4,357) while Kuraitis was in the Bahamas for the 2019 PokerStars Players NL Hold’em Championship (PSPC).
Postle also posted a $3,960 win on January 7th when he vacationed there. A Facebook post by Kuraitis was replied to by Andrew Barber, who was a guest on Veronica Brill’s Vlog discussing the scandal on January 18, 2020.
Postle’s Reported Winnings By Gumpnstein During Sessions Kuraitis Is Out Of Town
(Bahamas) January 7, 2019 +$3,960
(Bahamas) January 9, 2019 +$4,357
(Sydney) July 31, 2019 +$9,000
(Sydney) August 3, 2019 +$900
(Melbourne) August 5, 2019 +$6,100
(Melbourne) August 7, 2019 +$4,700
While it’s been alleged Postle performs poorly while Kuraitis is out of town, the actual evidence suggests otherwise. According to the same graphs used by sleuths to tally profits and to support their theories, Postle won over $29,000 in the six additional sessions Kuraitis was absent. Was he transmitting signals from another continent ?
Not only are the “sleuths” wrong in suggesting Kuraitis “was present for most, if not all of Postle’s winning sessions“, but when he was away, Postle booked several big wins. These facts totally contradict the narrative pointing to Kuraitis’ involvement.
In addition to painting Kuraitis as a cheater, without presenting obvious contradictory facts, investigative “sleuths” also suggested a car Kuraitis purchased was done so with “stolen” money from the alleged cheating. Poker pro Marle Cordeiro fanned the flames on that theory in a tweet when she commented “JFK…has a new Tesla that he showed off to me and @berkey11. Seems to be doing good for himself…”
The problem with the implication that Kuraitis purchased the car with ill gotten gains, is that the lawsuit (and everyone who believes in Postle’s guilt) lists July 18, 2018 as the start of the alleged cheating. In a Facebook post on December 6, 2017 Justin (Kuraitis) posts a picture of his Tesla, proving it was purchased seven months prior.
Is it not possible a single person making a six figure salary could afford the (Kelly Blue Book est) $45k used car ?
If Mike Postle was cheating is it possible there was someone aiding him ? Certainly, there could have been.
Could it have been Justin Kuraitis ? When you look at the facts, it’s very, very unlikely, and in Veronica Brill’s words, “It just doesn’t make sense.”
♠♥♣♦
Continuing Coverage of Our Investigation
New Numbers Cast Doubt On Postlegate
Rounder Report : Breakdown Of Mike Postle July 20, 2019 Stream At Stones
Postle May Have Played Regularly At Other Casino
Even When Gump And John S. Get It Right, They’re Wrong
Mike Postle Re-loads Twice In A Session He Plays With Bart Hanson : No Mention Of Non-Reported Add-ons In Interview With Win Rate Graph Creator John S.
I Told Mike Postle To “Make Some Money With The Moneymaker, From The Moneymaker”
Evidence Supports Mike Postle’s Version Of Infamous “Moneymaker Hand”
Mike Postle “Smoking Gun” Cheating Theory Flops With New Revelations
Mike Postle Asks Court To Dismiss Complaint
Reporter’s Errors Lead To Misreported Facts In Postlegate
Unearthed Evidence Exposes Major Error In Lawsuit Allegations
New Revelations Deflate “Postlegate” Narrative
Mike Postle Not Making All The right Moves Video
Statistics In ‘Postlegate” Completely Fabricated
In 2007 Rounder Magazine recognized Mike Postle as an elite pro and provided him with merchandise to promote the Rounder brand. No other considerations have been provided. Mr. Postle has never had ownership rights, nor has he ever been employed by Rounder. Rounder Life Media is not in a position to determine Mike Postle's guilt or innocence. This will be determined by the official investigation(s) being conducted, or through a court of law, not speculation. We will continue to pursue all relevant facts related to this case and report such, whether they support or disprove the charges.
Changes (March 17, 2020) - * If "The Poker Authority" Reports It, It Must Be True..was changed to..When "The Poker Authority" Reports It, People Listen - in order to best reflect the assertion/fact that Card Player is a highly respected source in the industry.
