illegal sports betting – Page 2

June 7, 2024

Fourth suspect in NBA gambling scandal turns himself in

On Friday (7 June) the US Attorney's office for the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York announced that the fourth, and last, suspect in the NBA sports betting scandal has turned himself in. Ammar Awawdeh is scheduled to be arraigned in Brooklyn Federal Court later today.

Awawdeh, Timothy McCormack, Mahmud Mollah and Long Phi Pham all allegedly conspired with former NBA player Jontay Porter. According to the complaint, the NBA gambling scandal revolved around Porter twice removing himself from games so that “under” bets made by the defendants would pay.

The four defendants bet on Toronto Raptors games which were played on 26 January and 20 March. They wagered with legal operators DraftKings and FanDuel, who ultimately reported suspicious activity to the NBA and the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA).

In April NBA commissioner Adam Silver banned Porter from the league for life. Porter isn’t directly named in the complaint, but is referred to ..

June 6, 2024

Two more arrested in NBA betting scandal

Two more people were arrested and arraigned in the NBA sports betting scandal on Thursday (6 June) morning, the US Attorney's office for the Eastern District of New York announced. That brings to three the number of conspirators arrested. One still remains at large.

Timothy McCormack and Mahmud Mollah were both released on $50,000 bond on Thursday morning. They were questioned by federal investigators as early as 30 May, according to the complaint.

Both allegedly bet on games in which then-Toronto Raptor Jontay Porter removed himself early so certain prop bets would pay. Porter is not directly named in the complaint, but the complaint refers to an NBA player who was banned for life. NBA commissioner Adam Silver issued Porter with a lifetime ban in April. He is the only player in the league to have been banned for betting thus far.

Porter was found to have bet on Raptors games and shared personal health information with his co-conspirators.

Two suspects won more than $1m tota..

June 5, 2024

Leaving on a jet plane? Man tied to Porter betting scheme busted at JFK

Banned NBA player Jontay Porter intentionally removed himself from games as a way to pay back “large gambling debts” according to a complaint filed in US District Court for the Eastern District of New York. One of Porter's “co-conspirators” was arrested on Monday (3 June) and appeared in court the following day.

Long Phi Pham, also known as “Bruce,” was ordered held in custody until trial, according to a US Attorney’s Office press release. Per the NY Daily News, Pham was identified as one of the top 1% of poker players in the world at his arraignment on Tuesday.

He was arrested at JFK Airport on Monday after booking a one-way ticket to Australia. Pham is being charged with wire fraud. Pham was carrying about $92,000 in cash and cashier’s cheques, three cell phones and betting slips, according to the complaint.

Three more participants at large

Three other co-conspirators have not yet been arrested. Porter is not named in the complaint, although there is reference to a “Playe..

June 4, 2024

Mizuhara pleads guilty to stealing $17m from Ohtani to pay gambling debt

On Tuesday (4 June) morning, former Shohei Ohtani interpreter Ippei Mizuhara pled guilty to two federal counts of stealing $17m from Ohtani. Mizuhara fell hard and fast into gambling debt with an illegal bookmaker. His sentencing is set for 25 October.

Mizuhara, wearing a dark suit with an untucked shirt and no tie, told Judge John A Holcomb: “I worked for Victim A and had access to his accounts. I had fallen into major gambling debt. The only way I could think of to pay that was to send money from Victim A’s account” to the illegal bookmaker.

Mizuhara then pled guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of subscribing to a fraudulent tax return. The maximum penalty for the charges is 33 years in prison and a $1.5m fine. Tuesday’s proceedings took place at the Ronald Reagan Federal Building and Court House in Santa Ana, California. Previous court appearances were at the Roybal federal complex in downtown Los Angeles.

From here, the court and US Probation Office will put toge..

June 3, 2024

What if Ippei Mizuhara had started betting with a legal operator in a legal market?

Shohei Ohtani's former interpreter Ippei Mizuhara bet millions with an illegal bookie. His addiction bloomed fast. Could he have been slowed or helped if he'd been wagering with a legal operator?

US operators have many checkpoints in place that may have indicated Mizuhara had or was developing an addiction problem. And none would have extended Mizuhara credit to gamble.

But the short answer, according to a recovering addict turned addiction counselor, is that none of that would have mattered. The best efforts by legal operators are no match for addiction.

“To a (addicted) bettor, none of those are a deterrent,” said Dave Yeager, who overcame a gambling addiction and is now a recovery counsellor. “In the throes of an addiction, when the addiction is at its highest, when the next bet is so all-consuming, then nothing else matters…. There’s just not a whole lot of things that are going to stop you from doing it.”

At its height, addiction is overpowering

Yeager, who works ..

May 14, 2024

Ohtani’s ex-interpreter pleads not guilty as part of deal; plans to change plea as early as next week

News trucks lined Temple Street in downtown Los Angeles on Tuesday (14 May) where Ippei Mizuhara was surrounded by Japanese and English-language reporters as he walked into his arraignment in federal court. Mizuhara pleaded not guilty to fraud charges as a “procedural matter,” with the intent to change his plea as early as next week.

Mizuhara, the ex-interpreter for LA Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani, faces up to 33 years in prison and $1.25m in fines. He agreed last week to plead guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of filing a false tax return. Mizuhara’s theft and illegal gambling were first reported on 20 March and the translator turned himself in to authorities on 12 April.

The arraignment took place at the Edward R Roybal Center and Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles.

As a testament to Ohtani’s popularity, an auxiliary courtroom was jammed with 46 reporters from media outlets, including CNN, Bloomberg and the Associated Press. Reporters signed a petition criticisi..

May 8, 2024

Mizuhara arraignment postponed to 14 May

On Wednesday (8 May) the US District Court for the Central District of California granted a request to posptone Ippei Mizuhara's arraignment to 14 May, according to court documents. The arraignment was originally scheduled for Thursday (9 May).

US Attorney E Martin Estrada submitted the request. Mizuhara’s attorney, Michael Freedman, agreed to the postponement, and the court has now signed off as well.

Mizuhara was Los Angeles Dodgers’ star Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter until, on 20 March, he was accused of stealing $16 million to pay off gambling debts.

Mizuhara turned himself in on 12 April and faces charges of bank fraud. Federal investigators are considering Ohtani a “victim” and the two-way baseball player said that he had been duped.

MLB not investigating Ohtani

On Monday (6 May), Major League Baseball Commissioner Bob Manfred told reporters that the league would let the criminal investigation play out. USA Today reported that Manfred “doesn’t feel a lot of pressure” t..

March 25, 2024

Ohtani: ‘I have never bet on sports or willfully sent money to the bookmaker’

On Monday (25 March), during a press conference regarding the sports betting scandal swirling around his former interpreter, Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani vehemently denied that he ever bet on sports, sent money to an illegal bookmaker or “willfully” paid off gambling debts for anyone.

The comments were in response to the news last week that Ohtani’s interpreter and friend, Ippei Mizuhara, was stealing from him to support a gambling habit.

“I have never bet on baseball or any other sports or have asked anyone to do that for me,” Ohtani said in a prepared statement. “Up until a couple of days ago, I didn’t know this was happening. In conclusion Ippei has been stealing money from my account and has been telling lies.”

Ohtani appeared with a new interpreter and did not take questions after the statement.

The man who owns baseball’s richest contract – he signed a 10-year, $700m deal with the Dodgers during the off season – was earnest, straightforward and direct in his ..

March 20, 2024

Baseball star Ohtani’s lawyers: Interpreter stole for illegal sports betting

The Los Angeles Times claims lawyers for baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani are accusing the ballplayer's interpreter of stealing money and placing “bets with an allegedly illegal bookmaker who is the target of a federal investigation”.

The Los Angeles Times broke the story today (20 March) claiming baseball superstar Ohtani’s lawyers are accusing the ballplayer’s interpreter Ippei Mizuhara of “massive theft” for illegal sports betting.

According to the Times’ report, learning of the theft was incidental after Ohtani’s name turned up during an investigation into Michael Bowyer.

“Millions” of dollars involved in illegal sports betting investigation

Two sources told the newspaper that “millions of dollars” were involved. Federal agents “raided” Bowyer’s Orange County, California. home last year as part of an illegal sports betting investigation, and the Times discovered Ohtani’s name came up in that investigation.

According to an ESPN report, $4.5m was wired out of Ohtani’s acco..

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Tag: illegal sports betting