Poker professional Antonio Esfandiari reported $1 million in cash and valuables missing back in July. The police finally have apprehended a suspected, 46-year-old Svitlana Silva, Esfandiari’s father’s former paramour.
Svitlana Silva Arrested in Esfandiari’s Theft Case
Authorities have apprehended Svitlana Silva, a 4-year-old-woman, who is the primary suspect in the robbing of high-stakes poker professional Antonio Esfandiari. The woman reportedly committed the crime back in July and the victims reported the incident on July 14.
However, it has taken the authorities until August 23 to proceed with an arrest, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported. Silva, who is a former poker dealer, was accused of pocketing $1 million worth of cash, chips, jewelry and other valuables which belonged to Esfandiari and his father, Bejan.
According to the Review-Journal, Silva had intimate knowledge with the Esfandiaris wealth and more importantly, storage units and saves combinations, as Silva had a relationship with Bejan.
Based on the available reports, the stolen money amounted to $150,000 in cash, $500,000 in casino chips and designer watches and Esfandiari’s Big One For One Drop bracelet won at the 2012 World Series of Poker (WSOP) along with $18.3 million in cash.
Silva didn’t escape with the money but, rather, she used it to fuel her own gambling habits. She was originally spotted at the Bellagio’s poker room, playing in a private high-stakes game. Initially, Silva said she was innocent, but the police found $25,000 of the missing casino chips on her, and even more chips in her car.
She was charged with burglary and possession of stolen property and detained at the Clark County Detention Center. She has posted bail and she will appear in court in October.
The Hardships of Being a Rich Poker Professional
Meanwhile, Esfandiari’s own poker career is quite impressive. For a long while back in the day he was one of the most capable poker players, winning a number of big tournaments one after another.
Today, he places 16th on the all-time money list in the poker community with $27.2 million to his name and several WSOP and World Poker Tour titles. He spends most of his time in Southern California where he lives with his family.
As it turns out, being rich in the poker world doesn’t come without its downsides. Other poker professionals, including Hoyt Corkins, was robbed back in 2008, with burglars breaking into his home and stealing two WSOP bracelets and a number of motor vehicles.
Jonathan Duhamel was robbed by two men assisted by his ex-girlfriend back in 2011 and Danish poker professional Theo Jorgensen was shot in his in Kroner in 2012. Darren Elias, another big name in poker, also had his home broken into in 2019 with the perpetrator looking for money, and holding his baby sitter at gunpoint.
