FBI investigation
Betting and mafia scandal: NBA coach and professional on the loose
A scandal involving illegal sports betting and fraud rocks the NBA. A coach and an active professional are temporarily arrested. They protest their innocence and make accusations of their own.
After their high-profile arrests, including on charges of betting fraud and alleged mafia connections, NBA coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat professional Terry Rozier are free again. The pair maintain their innocence in two parallel cases in which a total of 34 people were arrested, including some with links to organized crime. FBI chief Kash Patel spoke of an “unbelievable fraud.”
Billups is the coach of the Portland Trail Blazers and was already a star as a player before that – the 2004 champion with the Detroit Pistons is a member of the elite basketball league’s hall of fame. Those who believe the prosecution also believe that Billups would “risk his legacy as a Hall of Fame player, his reputation and his freedom,” said his attorney Chris Heywood. “He wouldn’t risk all that, especially not for a game of cards.”
Lawyer: Arrests were public displays
The 49-year-old and 30 other people are accused of fraudulent poker involving the mafia. Other players who, according to investigators, unsuspectingly took part in specially organized celebrity card games, for example with Billups or the equally accused ex-Cleveland Cavaliers professional Damon Jones, are said to have been cheated out of at least seven million dollars, it was said.
While the suspended coach appeared before a judge in Portland, Rozier was taken to federal court in Orlando, Florida. Both were released under conditions. Rozier’s attorney, Jim Trusty, said his client is not a gambler. He criticized the authorities for the arrest, with which they wanted to parade the player in public. Rozier appeared in court wearing a shirt from his former team, the Charlotte Hornets, handcuffs and ankle shackles.
Rozier has previously been targeted for betting manipulation
The 31-year-old and other defendants are accused of insider betting. Among other things, internal team information was revealed to people who then placed bets. Players also deliberately manipulated their performance on the pitch in order to generate high betting revenue.
The league had already investigated Rozier in March 2023 because of suspicious bets made by other people regarding the number of points, rebounds and assists he was expected to receive in a game. Rozier left the game in question early, citing injury as the reason. He was not accused of any wrongdoing at the time.
dpa
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