FBI Director Kash Patel on Thursday announced the arrest of more than 30 people across 11 states, including Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups and Miami Heat player Terry Rozier, as part of a takedown of a massive sports gambling ring, which included a poker scheme and “sports rigging.”
The poker scheme, which used X-ray tables to read cards face down, wireless devices and chip tray analyzers, was tied to the Italian mafia, La Cosa Nostra.
“They used off-the-shelf shuffling machines that had been secretly altered in order to read the cards in the deck, predict which player at the table had the best poker hand, and relay that information to an off-site operator,” US Attorney Joseph Nocella said.
“Defendants used other cheating technologies such as poker chip tray analyzers, which is a poker chip tray that secretly read cards using a hidden camera—special contact lenses or eyeglasses that could read pre-marked cards, and an X-ray table that could read cards face down on the table,” he said.
The Bonanno, Gambino, Lucchese, and Genovese crime families were involved.
Terry Rozier allegedly used insider NBA information in a sports betting scheme.
According to NYC Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch, Terry Rozier actually faked an injury to leave a game early to make sure the bets paid out.
“In some instances, players altered their performance or took themselves out of games to make sure that those bets paid out,” Jessica Tisch said during a press conference.
“Terry Rozier, an NBA player now with the Miami Heat, but at the time playing for the Hornets, allegedly let others close to him know that he planned to leave the game early with a supposed injury. Using that information, members of the group placed more than $200,000 in wagers on his under statistics,” Tisch said.
“Rozier exited the game after just nine minutes, and those bets paid out, generating tens of thousands of dollars in profit,” she said.
Chauncey Billups was tied to the underground, rigged poker games.
“Cheating, corruption, and laundering have consequences. We followed the money, and the law caught up,” Kash Patel said.
WATCH:
NYPD COMMISSIONER: “In some instances, players altered their performance or took themselves out of games to make sure that those bets paid out.”
“Terry Rozier, an NBA player now with the Miami Heat, but at the time playing for the Hornets, allegedly let others close to him know… pic.twitter.com/DxsmgCOdGH
— Fox News (@FoxNews) October 23, 2025
“The charges and the arrests that were taken down across this country range from wire fraud, money laundering, extortion, robbery, illegal gambling,” Kash Patel said during a presser.
“The fraud is mind-boggling… we’re talking about tens of millions of dollars in fraud and theft and robbery across a multi-year investigation,” Patel said.
FULL COURT FRAUD: FBI Director Kash Patel on the sweeping NBA gambling bust:
“The charges and the arrests that were taken down across this country range from wire fraud, money laundering, extortion, robbery, illegal gambling.”
“The fraud is mind-boggling… we’re talking about… pic.twitter.com/JEvuHSSVjj
— Fox News (@FoxNews) October 23, 2025
Watch the full press conference here:
WATCH LIVE: FBI holds news conference after high-profile NBA arrests https://t.co/ry13q8wHE2
— Fox News (@FoxNews) October 23, 2025
BREAKING…please check back for updates.
The post BREAKING: FBI Raids NBA Gambling Ring Tied to Italian Mafia – More Than 30 People Arrested, Including Trail Blazers Coach Chauncey Billups and Heat’s Terry Rozier appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.