NBA Coach Chauncey Billups Denies Charges After FBI Gambling Probe Arrest
Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups is denying any wrongdoing after being arrested by the FBI as part of a criminal gambling investigation.
“Anyone who knows Chauncey Billups knows that he is a man of integrity; men of integrity do not cheat or defraud others,” the coach’s attorney, Chris Heywood, said in a statement, according to Fox Sports.
Billups’ attorney added that the coach “never bet on basketball games, provided inside information or sacrificed the trust of his team and the League because doing so would tarnish the game to which he devoted his entire life.”
Billups, 49, was arrested Thursday at his home in Oregon and was among about 30 others charged in the FBI’s “Operation Royal Flush,” launched under the Biden administration to track down a gaming syndicate linked to organized crime.
Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier was also arrested in a separate but related illegal gambling case.
According to the New York Posta source told them that “Billups, an NBA Hall of Famer, has been accused of participating in an alleged illegal poker ring linked to the Bonanno, Genovese and Colombo crime families.”
The FBI claims Billups was fully aware that the gambling team was defrauding victims of their money “using a rigged shuffling machine.”
The Trail Blazers released a statement following the arrest.
“We are aware of the allegations involving head coach Chauncey Billups, and the Trail Blazers are fully cooperating with the investigation,” the team said. “Billups has been placed on immediate leave and Tiago Splitter will serve as interim head coach. Any further questions should be directed to the NBA.”
The coach has been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering and is scheduled to be arraigned in New York on November 24.
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