I was embarrassed to see my name mentioned in at the now-defunct Gin Rummy Club in Denver.
The 57-page indictment against Jeff Castardi and six other defendants is filled with allegations about bookmaking, loan-sharking, fraud, extortion, tax evasion, etc.
Naturally, when my name appears up high in those stories, it sounds as if I was deeply involved with some bad people who were doing nefarious things. I’ve received many phone calls from friends wondering if I’m in trouble.
I want to assure everyone that I was not involved in the shocking illegal activities alleged in the indictment. I have not been charged with any crime, and I’m not going to be charged. I am simply one of 180 witnesses interviewed by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation as it built its case.
In October 2007, I ran into a buddy who I hadn’t seen in years. He said he was playing in a regular high-stakes poker game at a social club in Denver. I enjoy playing poker and the game sounded fun, so I accepted his invitation to check out the Gin Rummy Club.
For my first visit, I followed my friend in my own car, because I wasn’t sure what to expect. I planned to leave immediately if the club looked shady, scary, dangerous or otherwise like a place that I shouldn’t be.
I was pleasantly surprised. The club was right out in the open at 2380 S. Broadway, where thousands of cars drive by every day. There was a big, illuminated sign out front that had playing cards on it and the name, “Gin Rummy Club.” Posted on the side of the building was a plaque that stated the club had been licensed as a social club by the city and county of Denver in 2003.
I knew that poker was legal in three venues in Colorado: casinos in Black Hawk and Central City, in private homes and in licensed social clubs. So I was comforted by the club’s location on a busy street, its signage that made it clear that it was a venue for card-playing, and its posted license.
Inside, a buffet was set up next to a bar. There were two restrooms, three poker tables separated by partitions and a small closet in the middle that served as the vault. The manager explained that the Gin Rummy Club couldn’t serve alcohol because it would violate the terms of its social club license. Only soft drinks were served. Membership dues were $250 a month.
Everything about the club put me at ease and made me feel silly for worrying that it was going to be some seedy, illegal venue.
The tables, the chips, and the dealers were as professional as any casino. And as I got to know the players, I realized that these were all upstanding professionals who just liked to play poker. They were doctors, lawyers, bankers, business owners, former pro athletes, etc. I truly felt that I had found the perfect location to play poker. It seemed safe, secure, professional and perfectly legal.
The club was shut down by the CBI in April 2008. A few weeks later, I got a call from CBI agent Ralph Gagliardi. He said I was on the list of players at the club. I was later deposed, and now I am one of 180 potential witnesses in the case.
It was as shocking to me as it is to many others in the community to see my name featured so prominently in stories about the Gin Rummy Club. I was a merely a player, and was not aware of all the other alleged illegal activity that may have been happening behind the scenes.
Reggie Rivers is a CBS4 sports anchor. He was a Denver Broncos player and op-ed columnist for The Denver Post.
