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A professional poker player with a violent criminal history is now being accused of scamming poker players from Las Vegas to Florida.

Lenard Adams, aka “Lucky” in the poker world and the “Sweetheart Swindler” to police, was charged in 2017 with rape, fraud, intimidation, kidnapping, and theft in Indiana, according to CBS Chicago. He was alleged to have told women he was a neurosurgeon looking to buy children gifts for charity. Investigators at the time said he used the charitable guise to swindle his victims out of nearly $70,000 worth of cash and jewelry.

Although most charges were dropped, in 2019 he was sentenced to four consecutive 18-month sentences, with three years in a work-release program. The judge also ordered him to write apology letters and pay $14,127 in restitution to three of his four victims

“Lucky” appeared on Hustler Casino Live in October 2021 and competed against a table that included Phil Ivey and Garrett Adelstein. He was subsequently banned from the show after his criminal past became apparent.

Alleged Scam in South Florida

Since his livestream appearance, multiple poker players have claimed to have been scammed by Adams. PokerNews was contacted by a player who claims to have been scammed recently by Adams and wants to speak out to prevent future fraud victims.

Kevin (not his real name) is a young poker player, much like most of the alleged victims, who claims to have met Adams at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida on Friday, Jan. 10.

"(Adams) promised that if I took a massive flip he would stake me in a private game," Kevin said of his recent and first encounter with Adams. “I believe he showed me a fake money order from Hard Rock, which said he had $2 million credit there. Once we did the flip and I paid him, he started pressuring me asking for more money. I started to realize that there was no game.”

“Once we did the flip and I paid him, he started pressuring me asking for more money. I started to realize that there was no game.”

Kevin then claims he left the casino and went home “out most of my poker bankroll.” He acknowledged that “it should have been obvious” it was a scam. But, as he explained, he’d seen “Lucky” on poker livestreams playing big games, so he believed that Adams had the money to back him in a private game.

He was never put in a private game and hasn’t heard from Adams since. Not only did the alleged scam cost him financially, but it’s also caused him to lose interest in poker.

“My plan is to never play poker again. I guess I’m just not cut out for this world. I’m a college student and have a great job lined up. I don’t need it in my life anymore,” Kevin said.

Kevin doesn’t want to continue playing poker, but he said his reason for speaking about the incident with PokerNews was to do his part to prevent others from getting scammed.

Similar Incident in Las Vegas

This is not the first allegation against Adams from a poker player.

In May 2023, a player named “dcdan” shared a similar incident on the Poker Fraud Alert forum that he “was the recent victim of a scam committed by Lenard Adams for 7k cash.

“dcdan” alleged that he had met Adams at ARIA in Las Vegas and Adams had arranged to stake him in a high-stakes private game the next night. Before that could happen, “dcdan” lent Adams $7,000 in the casino pits and never saw him again.

“He asked me for 7k and I obliged,” the player wrote. “It happened so quick but soon enough it was gone, he ran off. My number and Instagram were immediately blocked.”

CBS Chicago reported that Adams told the judge he was a professional poker player. He has $155,055 in Hendon Mob earnings, including a career-best score of $ 30,534 from a fourth-place finish in a $1,100 Turbo event at the 2023 Wynn Summer Classic.

In August 2024, Adams won two events at the Seminole Hard Rock Poker Open for respective scores of $16,770 and $9,610.

Connor Richards is an Editor & Live Reporter for PokerNews and host of the Life Outside Poker podcast. Connor has been nominated for two Global Poker Awards for his writing.

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