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Details have emerged about the technology used to rig poker games in the illegal gambling scheme that allegedly included NBA Hall of Famer Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and retired NBA player Damon Jones.
Documents released by the FBI allege that the conspirators used a card-shuffle machine that used hidden technology to read the cards in the deck, predict which player at the table had the best hand, and relay that information via interstate wires to an off-site operator.
According to the documents, this operator allegedly communicated this information back to a master conspirator at the poker table, who used signals to relay the information to other conspirators at the table.
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The FBI documents also allege that the cheating players used other technology, including electronic chip trays that could secretly read cards placed on the table, card analyzers that could also detect which cards were on the table, and invisible markings placed on the cards that could only be seen with the help of specially designed contact lenses or glasses.
The U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Joseph Nocella Jr., called it “one of the most brazen sports corruption schemes since online sports betting was widely legalized in the United States,” and detailed the type of technology used at a news conference Thursday.
“They used off-the-shelf shuffling machines that had been secretly modified 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,” Nocella said.
NBA LEGEND CHAUNCEY BILLUPS, HEAT’S TERRY ROZIER ARRESTED AS PART OF FBI GAMBLING PROBE
A green poker table with poker cards is seen during the 2021 World Series of Poker at the RIO All-Suite Hotel & Casino on October 6, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Diego Ribas/PxImages)
“Defendants used other cheating technologies such as poker chip tray analyzers — which is a poker chip tray that secretly reads cards using a hidden camera — special contact lenses or glasses that could read premarked cards, and an X-ray table that could read face-down cards on the table.”
Billups and Jones were allegedly used as celebrity figures to draw competitors to the allegedly rigged poker games.
The DOJ said that in April 2019, Billups was one of five defendants who “organized and participated in rigged poker games” in Las Vegas “using a rigged mixing machine” in which victims lost at least $50,000. One of the defendants texted another co-conspirator that Billups should purposefully lose a hand to avoid suspicion of cheating.
During that game, a defendant said one of the victims had “acted like he wanted Chauncey to have his money” because he was “star struck” by Billups, according to officials.
In October 2020, Billups was reportedly netted $50,000 after a rich poker game. Before a game, Jones reportedly asked for a $10,000 advance and said he needed the act “badly.” He got $2,500.
Poker card and former NBA player Chauncey Billups (Photo by Soobum Im/Getty Images)
Billups’ career earnings exceeded $100 million as a player, while Jones earned at least $20 million.
More than 30 people were arrested on Thursday for their alleged roles in both schemes.
