US EditionMob Hand in Fixed Poker Games Ups the Ante in Illegal Gambling Investigation
The indictment exposes sophisticated cheating using technology in high-stakes poker games controlled by NBA figures and Mafia, with $7 million reportedly taken from wealthy players.
- On Thursday, federal prosecutors indicted an NBA coach, a player and nearly three dozen others in a poker ring where mobsters pocketed some of the $7 million fleeced across Las Vegas, Miami, Manhattan and Long Island.
- Organizers relied on exclusivity and celebrity allure, using NBA 'face cards' and excluding pros to attract wealthy players including former professional athletes.
- Prosecutors say the scheme used advanced tech and signals, with an off-site operator relaying signals to a 'quarterback' and texts like 'Big Mikey' asking to let someone win $40k in 40 minutes.
- Prosecutors say victims who lost money, including one who lost $1.8 million, were forced to pay via shell companies, robbery, extortion and assault; experts predicted plea bargains and light sentences.
- Following the 1980s crackdown and Cali’s death six years ago, prosecutors say the mob adapted, echoing Hollywood films like the 'Ocean's' series.
13 Articles
13 Articles
Associated Press News
Poker's NBA-and-Mafia betting scandal echoes movie games, and cheats, from 'Ocean's' to 'Rounders'
A big-money poker ring involving NBA figures indicted this week for allegedly cheating unsuspecting rich players echoes decades of films and TV shows, with supposed Mafia involvement adding to the drama.
After decades in the shadows, New York Mafia takes center-stage again in NBA-related gambling sting
Decades after a crackdown by prosecutors decimated the ranks of the New York Mafia, the indictment of an NBA coach, a player and nearly three dozen others in a betting scandal highlighted the mob’s persistence and adaptability to changing times and technology. Four of New York’s five organized crime families allegedly participated in the sophisticated rigging of high-stakes poker games that one investigator said were “reminiscent of a Hollywood …
Mafia returns to center stage in NBA betting scandal
NEW YORK — Decades after a crackdown by prosecutors decimated the ranks of the New York Mafia, the indictment of an NBA coach, a player and nearly three dozen others in a betting scandal highlighted the mob’s persistence and adaptability to changing times and technology. Four of New York’s five organized crime families allegedly participated in the sophisticated rigging of high-stakes poker games that one investigator said were “reminiscent of a…
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