- Newnum broke his nearly week long silence regarding allegations of his participation of the theft of dealer tip money from the Foxwoods Poker Room.
- In his statement posted on his own blog, Newnum states that while he is unable to talk about the incident, he plans to “step away from the poker world indefinitely.”
- Newnum offered no explanation, no apologies and no admission to any of the accusations.
On Tuesday, well-known poker tournament photographer and videographer, Jay “WhoJedi” Newnum broke his nearly week long silence regarding allegations of his participation of the theft of dealer tip money from the Foxwoods Poker Room. In his statement posted on his own blog, Newnum states that while he is unable to talk about the incident, he plans to “step away from the poker world indefinitely.”
Newnum offered no explanation, no apologies and no admission to any of the accusations, but rather addressed the short-lived backlash that took place against Assistant Supervisors and Dealers Union, Local 2121 president Billy Shea, who initially made the story public on January 8 by posting a message to union members on the union Facebook page.
“I would like to address the negative reaction against certain third parties, particularly Billy Shea, the union president who originally posted the story.” Newnum writes, “I want to state clearly that any negative reaction against him or attacks against his character has not been condoned by me.”
As previously reported by pokerfuse, according to court documents obtained from the Superior Court of New London, Connecticut, Newnum was arrested on-site and charged with 5th Degree Larceny on December 16. Newnum applied for Connecticut’s Accelerated Pretrial Rehabilitation, which was granted on December 24.
Here is the statement made by Jay “WhoJedi” Newnum in full:
First, let me say that it hasn’t been easy to stay silent.
The Foxwoods Mega Stack Challenge ended early in the morning on December 16th. After flying home that same day, I agreed that I would not discuss anything with anyone.
I have honored and will continue to honor that commitment, but in light of third-party reports and the subsequent reactions, I wanted to make this limited statement.
I would like to address the negative reaction against certain third parties, particularly Billy Shea, the union president who originally posted the story.
I want to state clearly that any negative reaction against him or attacks against his character has not been condoned by me.
Yesterday, I called Mr. Shea personally. We spoke at length, not about what he had posted, but instead about the reactions from the community. I hold no ill will against him, as he simply did what he felt he needed to do as union president. It was a great conversation with Billy and I do appreciate him taking the time to speak with me.
I have spent a decade as part of the poker community, and have truly come to appreciate this game and the family of people in it.
That being said, it seems for the best that I step away from the poker world indefinitely. I do want to say thank you to my family and my friends, both inside and outside of poker, who have been incredibly supportive during this time.
Finally, even though I won’t be a part of the poker world for now, I’ll still be rooting for the industry to continue to grow, expand, and improve, in all the ways that we know it can.
Jay Newnum
