Hustler Casino Live Player Lynne Ji Charged with Attempted Murder

Lynne Ji has been a popular social media creator and poker player for some years now, but in a shocking development in Las Vegas, she has been arrested for attempted murder of her on-off boyfriend Kevin Gao. The latter alleges that after a fight about Ji being an escort without Gao’s knowledge, Ji then grabbed a knife from the kitchen and stabbed him as Gao defended himself, causing a deep laceration to his upper arm. Ji strenuously denies the claims and has vowed to see Gao in court.

How Do Ji and Gao Know Each Other?

In recent years, Lynne Ji has become a well-known face both at the poker tables and on social media. Attracting a lot of followers via her accounts on X and Instagram, both of which go by the moniker ‘helloitslynne’, and frequently include dating advice to men. A popular player on live-streamed shows such as Hustler Casino Live and Poker After Dark, Ji was not known to have been dating Kevin Gao outside of poker circles.

The two players met at a cash game when Gao was dating Britney Jing, who was recently reported to have been banned by Hustler Casino Live while they conduct an investigation into her finances and the possibility she owed another player money. After Gao split from Jing, he began dating Ji, although they are said to have split up before leasing a Vegas condo together.

Gao himself said in an interview with Doug Polk after the alleged assault that he has been lucky with bad beat jackpots in his career, using not one but two six-figure sums to offset losses at the poker felt while he builds up his experience in the live arena. Describing the pair’s recent relationship as ‘over’, Gao then went on to detail how he found out Ji was acting as an escort and this led to him not feeling ‘great’.

How Did the Argument Go Down According to Gao?

Following an argument, Gao says he returned to the condo they were leasing together, whereupon Ji engaged him in a discussion that quickly turned physical, biting his leg. Gao then said Ji told him he’d regret pulling her hair to remove her from his leg and fetched a kitchen knife.

Calling 911, Gao then hid only for Ji to pursue him through the apartment and go to stab him. Turning away from the blow, Gao says he was stabbed in the arm instead of the chest, and wrestling the knife from her, let the arriving authorities take it from there. They arrested Ji on attempted murder and booked her overnight on a million-dollar bail.

The following day, Ji had been released, with Gao unaware of who paid the $1m bond. He says he was at the apartment for “30 seconds” when he realised Ji and her mother were there, making his excuses to leave, only to find his passport and drivers license missing when he returned.

Ji denies attempted murder and according to Gao, is claiming that he self-harmed the deep laceration in his arm, despite Gao demonstrating on the Doug Polk YouTube channel how physically difficult that would be for him to do. In a simple statement on X, Ji kept it short and sweet, saying: “I fully deny all charges and I look forward to clearing my name in court.”

What Happens Next?

“I’m just going to let the criminal justice system do its work.” ~ Kevin Gao.

The background to the alleged stabbing is as complex as the incident itself. Ji and Gao were supposedly in a relationship that had experienced its share of ups and downs. To that end, the decision from Gao to welcome Ji into his home and share living quarters after her rental agreement expired seems to have been a trigger for tension. Ad to that Gao’s revelation on the Doug Polk YouTube channel that he found out Ji was allegedly performing as an escort and there were cross words spoken.

Gao states that while he was playing online poker, Ji re-entered the property they shared and the argument resumed, escalating when Ji kicked out at him then bit him hard in his leg. Getting a kitchen knife, Ji is then alleged to have pursued Gao until he was cornered, whereupon she went to stab him in the chest, and he turned away from her, his shoulder absorbing the deep laceration instead.

With an attempted murder charge hanging over her, Ji has ceased publishing any content on social media. Released on that million-dollar bond ahead of a trial date, Ji has gone to ground and hasn’t conducted any interviews in the interim. According to Gao,’s information from mutual friends, Ji claims that Gao strangled her then stabbed himself in the arm. Gao said this simply didn’t happen and believes that the penalty for attempted murder including inflicting injury sits at 5-10 years in Las Vegas.

“I’m just going to let the criminal justice system do its work and trust that the outcome is something close to fair for everyone.” Gao told Doug Polk, who conducted a full and frank interview with Gao following his hospital treatment for the knife injury to his arm.

Here’s the Kevin Gao interview with Doug Polk in full: