NBA stars and NYC crime families indicted in poker scheme
Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups has been charged in a sweeping federal probe into an alleged illegal poker scheme tied to organized crime, sources told The Post.
The 49-year-old former NBA champion with the Detroit Pistons was arrested in Oregon Thursday morning, the night after coaching his team in their season opener.
Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier aka “Scary Terry” was charged as well, in a separate but related illegal gambling case, ABC reported.
Billups, an NBA Hall of Famer, has been charged with partaking in an alleged illegal poker ring tied to the Gambino, Bonanno and Genovese crime families, sources told the Post.
A total of 31 people across the country are charged with running rigged games, which took place in Manhattan, the Hamptons and Las Vegas, sources said.
The players involved were being paid by mobsters to play in card games fixed with technology and card shuffling machines to give the house the advantage, sources familiar with the case said.
The athletes were told to take a dive when they had to and win when they were told. It didn’t appear as if they were attempting to pay off any debts, sources said.
Former NBA player Damon Jones, 49, who spent 11 years in the league with multiple teams, is also charged in the FBI’s investigation, according to sources.
Rozier previously had been under investigation for unusual betting activity during his time with the Hornets, specifically a March 2023 contest. However, the NBA did not find any violation.
Rozier’s attorney Jim Trusty, said that his client met with NBA and FBI officials during 2023 regarding the case and slammed the manner in which he was taken into custody Thursday morning.
“A long time ago we reached out to these prosecutors to tell them we should have an open line of communication. They characterized Terry as a subject, not a target, but at 6 a.m. this morning they called to tell me FBI agents were trying to arrest him in a hotel,” Trusty told the Post.
“It is unfortunate that instead of allowing him to self surrender they opted for a photo op. They wanted the misplaced glory of embarrassing a professional athlete with a perp walk. That tells you a lot about the motivations in this case,” he continued.
“Terry was cleared by the NBA and these prosecutors revived that non-case. Terry is not a gambler, but he is not afraid of a fight, and he looks forward to winning this fight,” the attorney said.
Former NBA player Damon Jones, 49, who spent 11 years in the league with multiple teams, is also charged in the FBI’s investigation, according to sources.
The charges come less than a year after former Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter pleaded guilty to tipping off gamblers to games he purposely was going to rig — and earning them $1 million — in an effort to clear his own gambling debt.
Billups is scheduled to make his initial appearance in Oregon federal court on Thursday, but will eventually appear in Brooklyn federal court in the Eastern District of New York, which handled the case against Porter.
Billups, a five-time All-Star, was inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame last year.
Prosecutors and FBI Director Kash Patel are expected to announce further details about the alleged schemes at a press conference in Brooklyn on Thursday morning. Also named in the sweeping case is reputed gangster Tommy Gelardo.
https://nypost.com/2025/10/23/sports/portland-trail-blazers-coach-chauncey-billups-arrested-in-alleged-poker-scheme/
0 comments:
Post a Comment