Two men have been arrested after allegedly plotting to kill the owner of the Amateur Poker Tour (APT) using rattlesnakes.
Matthew Sowash was the target of the plot which involved a wooden box into the lid of which the boss's leg's could be inserted but could not be pulled out from.
Two men were charged with suspicion of conspiracy to commit murder, conspiracy to commit kidnapping and extortion.
Police were alerted when Mr Sowash contacted the Colorado Bureau of Investigation after receiving threatening emails.
Christopher Lee Steelman, 34, was arrested on Wednesday while 56-year-old Herbert Paul Beck was picked up on Thursday and both received bail set at $500,000.
According to Jim Shires of the Jefferson County Sheriff's office, the men were allegedly plotting to kill the poker boss because he owed them money.
Mr Beck said he had invested $36,000 in a firm that holds Texas Hold'em poker tournaments and now he was owed double the initial stake.
"The final and most disturbing method to Steelman was Beck wanting to kidnap Sowash's children and use them as leverage to get the money from Sowash," the affidavits stated.
However, as zoologists will know, although the rattlesnake's bite is very painful, the venom does not usually prove fatal.
Two men have been arrested after allegedly plotting to kill the owner of the Amateur Poker Tour (APT) using rattlesnakes.