Former Chinese social media exec arrested for illegally gambling

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Xu Chaojun, former executive of one of the most famous Chinese social media-Renren, similar to Facebook, was caught up in an illegal poker ring recently with near $440,000 stakes.

Xu Chaojun, photo from ifeng.com

Police arrested Xu and eight other participants while they were playing Texas hold 'em in a tea house in Dongcheng District, Beijing. Participants bid via a WeChat group by using specially designed code words and paid through online banking systems.

All the gamblers were strictly selected by Xu considering both their employment status and financial situation. Most poker players were found to be private entrepreneurs with bachelor’s or even master’s degrees.

“They don’t care about money. Then just want to win the game,” Xu told a local media.

Screen shot from a video shot in the illegal poker ring

Xu is an iconic person in China’s Internet industry. He used to be the vice president of Renren, a popular Chinese social media platform with 240 million users and also the COO of a leading online game developer, Shanda.

Texas hold 'em was his favorite game, Xu said it a lot of times during public appearances. Before he got caught, Xu was also reported to have participated in a Texas hold'em poker tournament in Hainan.

Xu’s hobby could mean big trouble this time, since he might face up to 10 years in prison for setting up this gambling ring.