The mastermind behind the December 2011 home invasion and violent attack on 2010 World Series of Poker Main Event champ Jonathan Duhamel (pictured) will plead guilty to some of the charges she is facing. Her trial has been postponed to later this week.Bianca Rojas-Latraverse, Duhamel’s ex-girlfriend, faces charges of armed robbery, breaking and entering, assault, forced confinement, and conspiracy in conjunction with the attack. Her trial was originally scheduled for last Friday, September 14, but was postponed to Monday upon request of her attorney, Sarah Desabrais.
Rojas-Latraverse allegedly had an “accident” in prison and wished to receive medical attention before standing trial. Prosecutor Nancy Delorme, however, said that it was not so much an accident, but rather “an incident involving violence.” Rojas-Latraverse was originally denied bail in January.
On Monday, the trial was pushed back one more time as Rojas-Latraverse decided to plead guilty to some of the charges, although they have not been specified. According to her attorney as quoted by CBC News, the defendant had “a change of heart” and desired a “clean slate.” The new trial date is this Friday, September 21.
The crimes at hand occurred the morning of December 21, 2011. According to Duhamel, two men later identified as John-Stephen Clark-Lemay and Anthony Bourque forced their way into his house, tied him up, beat him, and threatened to kill him. They stole his Main Event bracelet, a Rolex watch given to him by PokerStars to commemorate his big win, CAD $40,000, and €74,000. The watch, WSOP bracelet, and much of the money have since been recovered.
Duhamel had suspected that Rojas-Latraverse (pictured) was behind the break-in, as his two assailants had intimate knowledge of his condo, including the location of a safe. She was officially caught thanks to her own error. According to two witnesses who testified at her bail hearing in January, she allegedly said she wanted to rob Duhamel about three weeks before the incident. Then, during the early morning hours of December 21, Rojas-Latraverse allegedly sent the text, “Tomorrow at 10 think of me,” later followed by, “Everything is planned. We even have a driver if I choke.”After she was arrested on December 23, Rojas-Latraverse named Clark-Lemay and Bourque as accomplices. Police found Clark-Lemay on December 26 in a hotel with a large sum of the cash from the robbery. It was then that he was arrested, as were Bourque and a fourth man, Andre Robert-Perron, who was in possession of the Rolex.
Rojas-Latraverse and Clark-Lemay were denied bail and have remained in custody to this day. Bourque was released on his own recognizance in December and Robert-Perron was granted bail in January.
Fortunately, Duhamel, while hurt in the attack, was no worse for wear in the long-run. In a statement two days later, the former Main Event winner wrote, “I’m glad to tell you that I did not sustain any major injuries. I spent yesterday at the hospital and I’m black and blue all over but no broken bones, no blood clots, nothing to worry about.” His bracelet (pictured) was a tad battered after being recovered in mid-February.His poker playing certainly wasn’t hurt, either. In the first two weeks of January, Duhamel won $1.2 million at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure courtesy of a fourth place finish in the $100,000 Super High Roller Event for $313,600, a fifth place finish in the $5,000 Eight-Max Turbo Event for $17,990, a victory in the $5,000 Eight-Max Event for $239,830, and a runner-up finish in the $25,000 Eight-Max High-Roller Event for $634,550.
He also finished second in a $5,100 No Limit Hold’em Event at the 2012 L.A. Poker Classic in February, which was good for $121,115. His live tournament winnings this year have amounted to almost $1.5 million.
