Miami's Rozier, Portland's Billups among dozens charged in illegal sports betting, Mafia-rigged poker games

Portland shack Blazers head up train Chauncey Billups and Miami hot up ward Terry Rozier are among 34 people charged in connection with schemes involving illegal sports betting and rigged poker games backed by Mafia, authorities said on Thursday.

FBI Director Kash Patel and other law enforcement officials said the multiple charges involve four mafia families and organized crime networks, and "mind-boggling" amounts of fraud. Rozier's lawyer, Jim Trusty, accused the FBI of aiming for "misplaced glory" by embarrassing the professional athlete with a perp walk, rather than allowing him to self-surrender.

The indictments are related to two major cases.

One involves sports betting, the other rigged poker games. U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. Said at the news conference that in the first case, six defendants are accused of participating in an insider sports betting conspiracy that exploited confidential information about NBA athletes and teams. He called it "one of the most brazen sports corruption schemes since online sports betting became widely legalized in the United States."

The second case involves 31 defendants in a nationwide scheme to rig illegal poker games, Nocella said. The defendants include former professional athletes accused of using technology to steal millions from victims in underground poker games in the New York area that were backed by mafia families, he said.

In the sports betting scheme, players sometimes altered their performance or took themselves out of games early, New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said. In one instance, Rozier while playing for the Hornets told other he was planning to leave the game early with a "supposed injury," allowing others to place wagers that raked in thousands of dollars, Tisch said.

Billups was known as "Mr. Big Shot" as an NBA player

Billups played for Boston, Detroit, Toronto, Denver, Minnesota, the New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Clippers. He won the Joe Dumars Trophy, the NBA's sportsmanship award, in 2009 while playing for his hometown Denver Nuggets.

Now 49, he's in his fifth season as Portland's coach, compiling a 117-212 record.

Billups was a five-time All-Star with an NBA playing career that spanned 17 seasons, including a championship with Detroit in 2004. He was inducted to the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame last year.

The Blazers did not release terms of its coaching deal with Billups when it was announced in April. Portland missed out on the postseason for the fourth straight year under Billups, but they expressed confidence in the team's future.

"The core of Chauncey's leadership is his ability to build a collaborative culture and growth mindset for our young team," Blazers chair Jody Allen said then in a statement.

"So much promise here. I'm pumped about it," Billups said.

Posts still online from March 23, 2023 show that some bettors were furious with sportsbooks that evening when it became evident that Rozier was not going to return to the Charlotte-New Orleans game after the first quarter, with many turning to social media to say that something "shady" had gone on regarding the prop bets involving his stats for that night.

A prop is a type of wager that allows gamblers to bet on whether a player will exceed a certain statistical number, such as whether the player will finish over or under a certain total of points, rebounds, assists and more.

The NBA has expressed concerns about prop bets, and other sports have also openly worried about the potential for manipulation. Such bets — and bettors losing on them — have also exposed athletes to often hateful criticism from both fans in arenas and online.

The exact charge or charges Rozier faces haven't been made public. FBI Director Kash Patel and other law enforcement officials were expected to provide more information at a news conference in Brooklyn on Thursday.

But this case was brought by the same U.S. Attorney's office in Brooklyn that previously prosecuted ex-NBA player Jontay Porter, whose sentencing is set for Dec. 10. The former Toronto Raptors center pleaded guilty to charges that he withdrew early from games, claiming illness or injury, so that those in the know could win big with "prop bets" — wagering that he would underperform expectations.

Trying to get comment from lawyers for Rozier and Billups

Messages seeking comment were left Thursday morning with lawyers for Rozier and Billups.

Rozier's attorney, Jim Trusty, previously told ESPN that Rozier met with NBA and FBI officials in 2023 and was told that an initial investigation determined he did nothing wrong, the sports network reported.

Rozier was in uniform as the Heat played the Magic in Orlando Wednesday evening — though he did not play. Hours later, he was taken into custody in Orlando. The team didn't immediately comment on his arrest.

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