Chauncey Billups had no idea his name would be pulled into a major FBI gambling case this week involving Mafia-style poker cheating that may have robbed players of more than a million dollars in a single night. Federal agents arrested the Portland Trail Blazers head coach as part of a 31-person sting that exposed a secret high-tech cheating ring backed by New York’s most feared crime families, according to the FBI. The New York Post also spoke with one alleged victim who says he lost $1 million in one night, and blames a former NFL star as the “front man” who lured people into the game.
What role did the ex-NFL star play in the NBA poker scandal
Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, and former Cleveland Cavaliers player Damon Jones were all arrested this week. The FBI says this was not normal gambling, it was an organized criminal setup connected to the Gambino, Bonanno, and Genovese mafia families.The anonymous victim who spoke to the New York Post said he was invited to what looked like a clean high-stakes poker game because a “trusted ex-NFL player” was involved. When he arrived, the host suddenly doubled the buy-in from $10,000 to $20,000. He says players were surrounded by men who “would not stop pushing us to go all in.” He claims the group used hidden X-ray poker tables, contact lenses that read marked cards, and a secret off-site operator who sent live winning-hand data to players through a “quarterback” at the table.Federal prosecutors said in a press conference that the cheating tech was “shockingly advanced,” using shuffling machines that had been secretly modified to predict winning cards in real time. A photo even surfaced showing Chauncey Billups seated at a poker table with two alleged co-conspirators, first reported by DailyMail. Billups’ lawyer told ESPN he is “a man of integrity” and will fight the charges.
Curtis Meeks and ex-NFL star accused of rigging high-stakes private poker
Curtis Meeks, one of the 31 arrested, was directly named by the alleged victim. He claims Meeks and others threatened them until they agreed to pay the money they lost. He says they “used the professional athlete to make us feel safe.”Also Read: Donald Trump’s USFL New Jersey Generals Owner Jacket Resurfaces After 40 Years And Could Sell For A Shocking PriceThe NFL immediately sent a memo to all teams on Thursday reminding players that they are banned from any form of illegal gambling and must report any gambling debt over $10,000. The league warned that massive gambling losses make players targets for organized crime.In 2022, NBC Sports reported one NFL player may have lost $8 million to gambling in a single year, and the FBI says this investigation may now expand beyond just the NBA.
