NBA Betting Scandal Rocks Brooklyn Federal Court

BROOKLYN, NY— Federal prosecutors in Brooklyn charged former NBA players Malik Beasley and Ed Davis, along with four alleged co-conspirators, with orchestrating a sports betting scheme that prosecutors say relied on bribes, inside information and manipulated on-court performances to win hundreds of thousands of dollars in wagers.

A federal grand jury in the Eastern District of New York unsealed the indictment charging Beasley, Davis, William Brown, Robert Gorodetsky, Ernesto Plascencia and NBA player agent Paolo Zamorano.

The defendants face charges including wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, bribery in sporting contests and money laundering conspiracy.

Several defendants were arrested across the country and will appear in federal court in Brooklyn.

Prosecutors allege Beasley, while playing for the Milwaukee Bucks during the 2023-24 season, agreed to alter his performance in specific games in exchange for bribes.

According to the indictment, Davis, a former NBA teammate, acted as Beasley's "gatekeeper," receiving advance information about whether Beasley planned to underperform or overperform in categories such as points and rebounds.

Investigators allege Davis passed that information to the other defendants, who then placed wagers with multiple sportsbooks before the games began.

The indictment identifies three Bucks games in early 2024 in which prosecutors allege Beasley intentionally altered his rebounding or scoring performance, including games against the Cleveland Cavaliers, Charlotte Hornets and Los Angeles Clippers.

Prosecutors allege many of the wagers were successful.

In return, Beasley allegedly received bribes by having gambling debts owed to Davis reduced or paid.

"As alleged, the defendants turned professional basketball into a criminal betting operation, bribing then-NBA player Malik Beasley to fix his performance in multiple games in order to place fraudulent wagers, enrich themselves and cheat legitimate sportsbooks," U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. said.

FBI Assistant Director in Charge James C. Barnacle Jr. alleged the scheme "operated an illegal betting ring in an attempt to unlawfully earn hundreds of thousands of dollars."

In federal conspiracy cases, not all conduct must occur in the district. It is sufficient if part of the alleged scheme, including communications, coordination or financial transactions, passed through or affected the district.

Prosecutors can also establish jurisdiction if any co-conspirator committed an act in furtherance of the alleged scheme while located in the Eastern District, allowing the entire case to be tried in Brooklyn federal court.

The charges are allegations, and all six defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

If convicted, they face up to 20 years in prison on the wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges, as well as up to five years on the sports bribery charge.