Maguire sued over winnings at poker games

LOS ANGELES – “Spider-Man” star Tobey Maguire and other celebrities have been caught in a web of lawsuits seeking to reclaim more than $4 million won during unlicensed poker matches at upscale Beverly Hills hotels, court records show.

The lawsuits were filed by a bankruptcy trustee attempting to recoup money for investors duped in a Ponzi scheme.

The legal actions claim that the clandestine Texas Hold ’em matches were played in 2006 to 2009 and that card players won hundreds of thousands of dollars from Bradley Ruderman, architect of the Ponzi scheme.

Maguire is being sued for $311,000 plus interest. In all, 22 people have been individually sued.

Another defendant is “Welcome Back Kotter” star and poker aficionado Gabe Kaplan.

The suits contend the defendants have no right to keep money won from Ruderman, since the games did not have the appropriate government licenses.