The head coach of an National Basketball Association (NBA) team, a basketballer athlete and members of the alleged crime families were part of more than thirty people arrested in an FBI crackdown on illegal sports betting and rigged poker games.
Chauncey Billups, the head coach of Portland Trail Blazers and Terrry Rozier a Miami Heat point guard were part of the 34 people arrested and charged by the FBI on Thursday.
Both NBA members were implicated in seperate but related cases involving rigged pokwe games that were backed by the Mafia.
FBI Director Kash Patel revealed this in a press conference held in New York on Thursday adding that many former professional athletes were involved in the nationwide scheme.
The investigations included alleged illegal and rigged gambling activities in which the perpetrators used special technology including contact lenses to read cards, manipulate shuffles, and communicate with others
In one case, NBA player Terry Rozier is suspected to have feigned an injury during a game, information he is alleged to have passed on before the game started.
New York City police commissioner Jessica Tisch and U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Joseph Nocella also spoke at the joint press conference revealing details in the case.
The NBA reacting to the arrests in a statement said it was fully cooperating with investigations.
"Terry Rozier and Chauncey Billups are being placed on immediate leave from their teams, and we will continue to cooperate with the relevant authorities.
We take these allegations with the utmost seriousness, and the integrity of our game remains our top priority.” it said.
The BBC has published a statement from Attorney James Trusty representing NBA star Rozier denying the allegations and saying Rozier will fight the charges.
In the statement, he questioned the motive of the FBI saying that the agency "opted for a photo op."
"It is unfortunate that instead of allowing him to self surrender they opted for a photo op.
They wanted the misplaced glory of embarrassing a professional athlete with a perp walk. That tells you a lot about the motivations in this case". the statement read.
Some other athletes who were indicted in the FBI investigation include:
Eric Earnest: also known as "Spook"
Marves Fairley: also known as "Vez", "Vezino" and "Vezino Locks"
Shane Hennen: also known as "Sugar"
Damon Jones: alson known as "D Jones" and "Dee Jones"
Deniro Laster: also known as "Niro", "Payso" and "Peso"
Terry Rozier: also known as "Scary Terry" and "Chum"
Nelson Alvarez: also known as "Spanish G"
Ammar Awawdeh: also known as "Flapper Poker" and "Flappy"
Matthew Daddino: also known as "The Wrestler"
The National Basketball Players Association representing current professional basketball players has reacted to news of the indictments calling for "due process".
“The integrity of the game is paramount to NBA players, but so is the presumption of innocence, and both are hindered when player popularity is misused to gain attention," a spokesperson said to the BBC.
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President Donald Trump said Iran is keen to reach a deal with the United States, claiming Washington had paused engagement to allow funeral ceremonies for late Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Russia's Defence Ministry has said its forces are clearing the town of Lyman in Donetsk of Ukrainian forces, Moscow's state news agency Tass reported. Meanwhile, Russian attacks killed at least six people across three Ukrainian regions on Friday, regional officials said.
Uzbekistan will open an embassy in Georgia, the Central Asian country’s presidency has said. The announcement follows talks between Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze in Tbilisi.
Thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of the eastern German city of Erfurt on Saturday as the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) opened its annual party conference, where delegates voted to keep Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla as the party's co-leaders.
The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has raised its forecast for the rapid emergence of a strong El Niño, warning the climate pattern is likely to drive higher global temperatures and intensify extreme weather in the months ahead.
India is investigating a data breach at Tata Electronics that exposed sensitive documents linked to Apple's unreleased iPhone 18 Pro, marking the government's first public comments on the incident.
Iran and the U.S. have concluded indirect talks in Doha without a major breakthrough, with discussions focused on maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and frozen Iranian funds. Both sides are expected to meet again after the funeral of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
International politicians and religious leaders have paid respects to Iran's late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei throughout the day, ahead of his six day funeral ceremony which begins on Saturday. His casket is currently on display at the Iman Khomeini Grand Mosalla in Tehran.
Germany has requested urgent talks with China's ambassador following reports that Chinese authorities trained Russian soldiers, adding fresh strain to relations between Beijing and Europe amid the war in Ukraine.
Russia's Defence Ministry has said its forces are clearing the town of Lyman in Donetsk of Ukrainian forces, Moscow's state news agency Tass reported. Meanwhile, Russian attacks killed at least six people across three Ukrainian regions on Friday, regional officials said.
French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to use next week's NATO summit in Ankara to advance his push for greater European responsibility in security, with a bilateral meeting planned with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as Paris seeks closer coordination with key allies.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has congratulated U.S. President Donald Trump on the 250th anniversary of American independence, saying Russia and the United States share a special responsibility for maintaining global security as the world's two largest nuclear powers.
China said on Saturday it had launched a coast guard patrol east of Taiwan, prompting a strong protest from Taipei, which accused Beijing of illegally expanding its authority and undermining regional stability.
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