Justice Department expects to extend plea deals to 12 in NBA-Mafia rigged poker case

Justice Department Anticipates Plea Agreements for Twelve in NBA-Mafia Poker Scandal

Federal authorities anticipate broadening plea agreements for twelve individuals in a major gambling investigation tied to organized crime, which implicated a basketball Hall of Famer and a former NBA player, as revealed in a court filing issued Tuesday. The brief, submitted ahead of a status conference scheduled for Wednesday, did not clarify which specific defendants are likely to accept the offers. This case, part of a broader effort, involves two separate illegal gambling operations, one of which centers on allegedly Mafia-backed poker games and the other on using confidential data to wager on NBA matches.

Indictment Reveals Mafia Ties and NBA Involvement

The indictment names members and affiliates of four prominent Mafia crime families, alongside Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, and ex-NBA player Damon Jones. Notable figures from the sports world, dubbed “face cards” in the document, were central to the scheme, serving as bait to attract affluent victims to manipulated games. Prosecutors stated that Billups and Jones were part of the “cheating teams” and received financial benefits for their roles in the operation.

According to the filing, prosecutors informed U.S. District Judge Ramon Reyes about their intention to finalize formal plea agreements for nearly half of the indicted defendants in the upcoming days. They noted productive discussions with attorneys representing at least nine others, expressing confidence that more deals could be reached before the trial phase begins. All defendants are required to attend the status conference in Brooklyn’s federal court on Wednesday.

Discovery Materials Highlight Extensive Evidence

Since November, the government has been releasing discovery documents incrementally, including evidence collected from seven electronic devices, over 100,000 pages of financial and phone records, and more than 800 surveillance photographs. The filings also referenced pole camera video from a location tied to the alleged poker fraud, alongside several terabytes of data from digital accounts and iCloud storage.

Chloe Atkins, a reporter for the NBC News National Security and Law Unit based in New York, contributed to the coverage. Tom Winter, NBC’s National Law Enforcement and Intelligence Correspondent, also reported on the case.