E-Sports/LoL Update Friday 5/20 8 PM (UPDATE 5/21 8 PM)

It is now nearly 48 hours since the imposed deadline.

• Team Envy has signed three members of the old Renegades team, the LCS slot of which they purchased two days ago.  They have been approved, and will be in the summer split of the North American LCS, the top professional level.
• FURTHER UPDATE 2:30 AM PDT 5/21:  However, one player, Crumbz, did not join them.  When Envy refused to take him, he retired from League of Legends.  One has to wonder, now, how many players' careers have ended because of this criminal activity.  (I appear to count at least two.)
• ANOTHER FURTHER UPDATE 8 PM PDT 5/21:  Crumbzz, and I would assume it's the same person, was taken by new team owners Apex Gaming as a coach for their LCS and Challenger teams. 
• The Challenger Series team's banned slot has apparently been announced sold today.  Amro, a co-owner of e-sports outfit VexX Gaming, has purchased the Challenger Series spot, he announced on his Twitter today...

I will be releasing a statement shortly regarding my purchase of TDK and our future

We are looking for investors in the meantime, no staff.

— Amro // noXn (@VexX_noXn) May 20, 2016

• There are still only nine teams in the North American LCS.  (The Challenger Series is now (CORRECTION) up to five -- Apex Gaming, who bought the demoted team dignitas, the above situation, one team finishing as semifinal losers in the Challenger playoffs, and the winners of promotion matches next Wednesday.  One of the semifinal losers broke up their team and is selling their spot.)  As of about 8 PM PDT 5/21 (almost 72 hours since the deadline), the LoL E-Sports website still shows the tenth team as "TBD".  Their first match is supposed to be with Echo Fox, two weeks from today, June 4, at noon PDT.
• There is an unconfirmed report that one Chinese member of Team Impulse (the one remaining slot left to be sold or vacated) bought the rights to the team (and the team only), but the rumor states the price is only $1,400 -- so it is almost certainly a troll situation.
• ESPN has had a legal expert, a representative of several e-sports teams and organizations, writing, as of now, a pair of articles slamming the current administration and discipline structure of e-sports, especially Riot Games and their handling of famous streamer/remote illegal owner of Renegades MonteCristo.

Bryce Blum has every reason to slam Riot on the handling of MonteCristo.  He legally represents Renegades and half the rest of the LCS as a lawyer.

Bryce, WHERE'S THE LAWSUIT?

MonteCristo (by the ruling provided) lied to Riot Games about involvement with and by Chris Badawi, backed by significant testimony from parties within and with contact to the Renegades organization.  That fact alone would've prevented MonteCristo (Christopher Mykles) from any ownership stake in Renegades, and Renegades would've been disqualified and disbanded.

That fact alone ALSO means they don't need to tell MonteCristo a damn thing before they release their findings -- it's useless to do so, because, barring complete conflict of interest or malfeasance on Riot's part, MonteCristo's "defense" cannot be trusted.

That fact alone ALSO means MonteCristo needs to be put in handcuffs.  This constitutes material "grand theft by false pretenses" by California law, Penal Code 532.

532.  (a) Every person who knowingly and designedly, by any false or
fraudulent representation or pretense, defrauds any other person of
money, labor, or property, whether real or personal, or who causes or
procures others to report falsely of his or her wealth or mercantile
character, and by thus imposing upon any person obtains credit, and
thereby fraudulently gets possession of money or property, or obtains
the labor or service of another, is punishable in the same manner
and to the same extent as for larceny of the money or property so
obtained.

When I did the earlier blog post positing what to exactly charge Badawi with by his mere involvement when banned, I didn't remember to include Riot's statement that MonteCristo would never have gained the team if he had been truthful.

Under Penal Code 532, MonteCristo would be charged with felony grand theft by false pretenses.  (In the last line of 532 (a), refer to Penal Code 490 (a), stating theft and larceny are equivalent terms under the California law.)

This is before we get to the player safety stuff, or the dealings with Dragon Knights.

Bryce Blum, WHERE IS THE LAWSUIT?  I don't want to hear slamming of Riot's policies until we find out you're in court to defend MonteCristo.

Because here's the big problem:  The only reason, now, the spring split probably stands and Team Envy is allowed to enter the LCS at all (against the backdrop of possible possession of stolen property!) is...  Mayer vs. Belichick, Patriots, and NFL.

The only reason Riot Games can fairly allow the results of the spring split to stand and to allow Team Envy to play in the summer split is the same law which allows sports leagues to rig their results without compensation to or retribution from any relevant party.  They have the right to do so, and there is no court recourse to that effect.

There will be more to this story.  Stay tuned.