Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn on Thursday, October 23, 2025, unsealed two indictments tied to illegal gambling, charging more than 30 people across 11 states — including Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier — in alleged insider sports-betting and rigged high‑stakes poker schemes with links to La Cosa Nostra.
Authorities said the parallel cases stem from a yearslong investigation led by the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York. One indictment centers on a network that allegedly used non‑public NBA information to place profitable wagers; the other outlines a nationwide operation that rigged underground poker games using concealed technology. In the poker case, 31 defendants were arrested in 11 states. In the betting case, six defendants — including Rozier and former NBA player and coach Damon Jones — were charged with wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy, prosecutors said.
The poker indictment alleges that members and associates of the Bonanno, Gambino and Genovese crime families backed New York–area games and took a cut of proceeds. Prosecutors say former professional athletes were used as “Face Cards” to attract wealthy participants, while cheating teams relied on modified shuffling machines, hidden cameras, marked decks and even an X‑ray table to read face‑down cards. Investigators estimate victims were defrauded of at least $7 million. The filing also details alleged violence tied to the enterprise, including extortions and a gunpoint robbery committed to seize a rigged shuffler.
In the sports‑betting case, prosecutors allege defendants exploited confidential information such as undisclosed injuries and planned lineup changes to wager on NBA games. According to the indictment, an example occurred on March 23, 2023, when Rozier — then with the Charlotte Hornets — allegedly told an associate he planned to leave a game early citing injury. Co‑conspirators then placed more than $200,000 on his “under” player props, and Rozier exited after nine minutes, generating tens of thousands of dollars in profits for the bettors, the filing states. Additional episodes cited in the indictment involve insider tips tied to the Trail Blazers, Magic, Lakers and Raptors; former NBA player and coach Damon Jones is accused of repeatedly providing pre‑release medical and lineup information to bettors.
FBI Director Kash Patel and U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. announced the charges alongside other federal and New York officials. Patel said the Bureau will continue to “follow the money” in an investigation that remains active. Nocella said the poker games were fixed to ensure victims “would lose big,” and emphasized that insider wagering “erodes the integrity of American sports,” according to the Justice Department’s statements and filings.
Billups, a Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame inductee in 2024, is charged in the poker case and identified by prosecutors among members of a cheating team. Rozier is charged in the separate betting case. Both were placed on leave by the NBA while the league reviews the indictments, according to statements from the league and teams. Attorneys for the defendants have denied wrongdoing or said their clients will contest the allegations. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
While the poker filing names three New York crime families (Bonanno, Gambino and Genovese), a New York police official said the broader network touched multiple families. Prosecutors said their work is ongoing and asked potential victims of the rigged games to contact the FBI. The cases underscore how technology‑driven schemes and organized crime can intersect with professional sports — and how player‑focused prop bets are particularly vulnerable to abuse, regulators and officials have warned.
