An NBA player and coach are among dozens of people arrested as part of a sweeping FBI investigation into illegal sports betting and allegedly rigged, mafia-linked poker games. Miami Heat player Terry Rozier and Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups were named by federal prosecutors in two separate indictments on Thursday. Both men deny the allegations. Rozier, 31, is among six people arrested over alleged betting irregularities. They include NBA players accused of faking injuries to influence gambling markets. Billups, a Hall of Fame player turned coach, is one of 31 people charged in a separate illegal poker game case involving retired players and the mafia. That case, which prosecutors said involved four of the five major crime families in New York, uncovered an alleged scheme to lure victims into playing rigged poker games alongside high-profile sports stars before stealing millions of dollars. They did so using technology including special contact lenses and glasses that could read pre-marked cards and an X-ray table, according to authorities.
Published: October 23, 2025 4:19 pm
Source: BBC — Read original