Former Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter will be charged with a federal crime after a sports scandal resulted in a lifetime ban from the NBA, according to the Associated Press (h/t ESPN).
According to the Associated Press, federal prosecutors in Brooklyn filed a fact sheet on offenders on Tuesday, and while the document specifies the fees or date of the hearing, it shows that the case is similar to the ongoing prosecution of the four men involved in the gambling. scandal.
The four men, Ammar Awawdeh, Timothy McCormack, Mahmoud Mullah and Long Phi Pham, were charged with conspiring to take advantage of prior knowledge of the player’s plans to leave two games early.
The league’s investigation into Porter found that the 25-year-old “leaked confidential data about his own fitness because he knew he was an NBA bettor” ahead of a March 20 game. Another bettor related to Porter bet $80,000 to win $1. 1 million on Porter. poor performance in the game on March 20.
The investigation also found that Porter had claimed to be ill at the March 20 game and that he had played only 3 minutes. The NBA also found that Porter placed at least thirteen bets on NBA games between January and March of this year.
Last month, Porter’s attorney said Porter was “overwhelmed by a gambling addiction” and was under treatment and cooperating with authorities, according to the Associated Press.
Porter, who played just 26 games last season, averaged 3. 7 points, 2. 6 rebounds and 1. 6 assists per game. Undrafted in 2019, Porter, who is the younger brother of Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. , played just 37 games with the Memphis Grizzlies and Raptors.