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Cybergambling on the reservation17 October 2000An Indian-owned company called Mohawk Internet Technologies, on the Mohawk Territory of Kahnawake south of Montreal, is playing host to at least nine cybercasinos–the only major online gambling sites openly operating from North American soil. While both Canadian and U.S. authorities insist that running an online casino is illegal, the Mohawks are gambling that their sovereign status can give offshore cybergaming havens like Antigua a run for their money. Tribes on both sides of the border are eyeing the venture as a possible precedent. According to Kahnawake Grand Chief Joseph Norton, the council was approached with the scheme three years ago by an investment group introduced by Michael Tobin, now the venture''s managing director.In return for a $2.5 million investment in high-tech equipment, the council revived its dormant Kahnawake Gaming Commission and hired Frank Catania, a former New Jersey gaming regulator, to draft its licensing code, charging $10,000 per site, as well as an undisclosed slice of profits. Among its licensees is Golden Palace Casino–rated last year by Greenfield Online as the most popular of 40 leading gambling sites–which boasts it now handles 15 million bets a week. Originally licensed three years ago in Antigua, it moved to Kahnawake last year. Norton admits the venture remains in legal limbo and under surveillance by Quebec and federal authorities. However, according to US Online, its licensees are wagering they won''t challenge a tribe that seized control of Montreal''s Mercier Bridge during a notorious 1990 armed confrontation. |