Professional poker player Johannes Strassmann has been in the news for the last week as the German poker pro had gone missing after visiting Slovenia. Strassmann had done extremely well on the poker circuit and was known for playing high-stakes games and winning large hands.
Strassmann who was 29 years old turned pro during 2006 and since then has not only done well playing professional poker but also launched an online poker school, where he taught and coached students from around the world, how to play professional poker. It is estimated that Strassmann earned close to $2 million dollars since turning pro.
Strassmann had flown into Slovenia as part of a program to coach aspiring poker players who enrolled in this online poker school. Reports confirm that the German poker pro had taken part in a poker tournament in June and won €200,000. However, he suddenly disappeared and during the 4th week of June and family and friends grew concerned about his personal safety and whereabouts.
The Slovenian authorities were informed and they started a search for Strassmann. Members of the poker community also decided to help by starting a facebook group that focused on finding locating Strassmann. It was later confirmed that he was last seen in Ljubljana after which he went missing. For over a week, the authorities searched but were unable to trace his whereabouts.
Johannes Strassmann was finally located on the 28th of June near the Ljubljana river and he was done. The authorities have conducted a number of tests which revealed that there no traces of violence and DNA samples confirmed that it was indeed the body of Johannes Strassmann. His death comes as a shock to both family and the poker community at large as Strassmann was a millionaire who had a bright future on the poker circuit.
The authorities have not yet wrapped up the investigation but will delve further into details to fully rule out the possibility of foul play. Police need to ascertain if Strassmann was carrying large amounts of cash on him as well as confirm who were his last known associates.
The global poker community has been recently rocked with a number of scandals ranging from illegal poker websites, fraudulent online gambling companies, irregular payouts and opposition from anti-gambling lobbyists who believe that the gambling industry is destructive to the local community and society at large. The last two months have also witnessed the death of poker players in Europe whose demise have been suspicious and gives anti-gambling activists more reasons to campaign.
