Riot cracks whip on Amihan
The team will also have to forfeit its prize winnings from both the SEA Icon Series Philippines Summer Season and the SEA Icon Series Summer Super Cup
Amihan Esports is in serious trouble after Riot Games slapped falsification charges on one of its members.
In a statement, Riot Games announced that Amihan will be slapped with a oneyear suspension after the team was caught forging documents to make him eligible to see action in the Wild Rift SEA Icon Series Philippines Competition.
The game developer said Amihan violated Rule 2.3 that states that “no player shall be considered eligible to participate in any Icon Series-affiliated match before their 17th birthday, defined as having lived 17 full years.”
“Following investigations that were reopened in light with new evidence against Amihan Esports and the eligibility of its team member, AMI Karlll (Karl Kent Bautista), Riot Games Southeast Asia Esports has ruled that AMI Karlll has violated Rule 2.3 (Age) of actual age, thereby qualifying for the competition’s minimum age requirements of 17 years,” Riot said.
Aside from the setback brought by the ban, Riot also ordered Amihan Esports to return its winnings from previous tournaments.
Amihan won a total of P950,000 for conquering the Visayas group stage and emerging as the national champion in the SEA Icon Series PH and bagged $8,500, or roughly P430,000, for finishing 5th to 8th places in the Summer Super Cup.
“The team will also have to forfeit its prize winnings from both the SEA Icon Series Philippines Summer Season and the SEA Icon Series Summer Super Cup,” Riot said, adding that the forfeited amount will be donated to charity.
All our participating teams are expected to abide by the rules of fair play, agreed upon prior to participation in the tournaments. Violations of the rules of fair play will not be tolerated.
“The forfeited prize money will be donated to a charity of Riot’s choice through the Riot Games Social Impact Fund. Amihan Esports’ slot for the SEA Icon Series Fall Season will also be vacated and PPGL will announce a new qualifier to fill its spot.”
Karlll, for his part, was slapped with a nine-month suspension that started in their last match on 26 June while former team manager Christian Villegas was given a one-year ban as well.
Team owner Francis Mariano, however, was given the stiffest sanction as he was assessed with an indefinite ban and will not be eligible to apply for reinstatement for two years.
Riot launched an investigation after allegations of map hacking and inaccurate player documentation were hurled at Karlll. Initial findings that his gameplay was clean and his birth certificate was legitimate.
But the game developer got new evidence regarding Karlll being a minor and received admissions that his documents were indeed forged to make him eligible. He also admitted that Amihan was fully aware of it.
“Maintaining the competitive integrity of all our Esports tournaments as well as the safety and well-being of pro teams are Riot’s top priorities, and we take such violations extremely seriously,” Riot said.
“All our participating teams are expected to abide by the rules of fair play, agreed upon prior to participation in the tournaments. Violations of the rules of fair play will not be tolerated.”