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Federal judge nixes evidence from FBI agents who shut off hotel Web service, then posed as repairmen

The Federal Bureau of Investigation overstepped its bounds when it cut off Internet service to the Las Vegas hotel suite in which a Malaysian businessman was staying and then posed as repairmen sent to fix the service, a federal judge ruled on Friday.

U.S. District Judge Andrew Gordon suppressed the evidence seized by the FBI in July from a villa at the Caesars Palace Hotel where Wei Seng “Paul” Phua was staying, according to the Associated Press and the South China Morning Post.

It isn’t clear if the ruling leaves the feds with sufficient evidence to proceed against the 51-year-old in an ongoing gambling case.

Related coverage:

ABAJournal.com: “FBI turned off hotel Web service then sent ‘repairmen’ to get evidence, defense lawyers say”