Damon Jones, the former NBA player who is set for sentencing in early January, pleaded guilty to federal charges stemming from what prosecutors described as a gambling sweep involving sports betting fraud and rigged poker games. In back-to-back hearings in Brooklyn federal court, Jones entered guilty pleas to two counts of conspiracy tied to wire fraud and the misappropriation of money from poker players, according to The Associated Press.
In the sports betting case, Jones pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and described the role he played in the alleged scheme. Sitting with his lawyer, he read from a prepared statement as Magistrate Judge Joseph Marutollo presided, acknowledging that he aided the betting conspiracy with “insider information that I obtained as a result of my relationships as a former player,” the AP reported.
Jones apologized to the court as well as to his family, peers, and to the National Basketball Association. He told the judge that the sports betting conspiracy, which federal prosecutors said ran from December 2022 to March 2024, involved using nonpublic information about injuries to NBA stars to gain an advantage on sports bets, including information prosecutors said involved his one-time teammate LeBron James.
Federal prosecutors said the betting conduct included using Jones’ access to nonpublic injury information. The AP report said prosecutors described an example in which Jones allegedly promoted a wager after learning of information about a star’s lower-body injury and that the Los Angeles Lakers were later ruled out of a game and lost, according to prosecutors.
At the second hearing, Jones pleaded guilty in the poker games case and described his role as part of the operation, the AP reported. Jones admitted he was paid to function as a “face card” at poker games held in Miami and the Hamptons, using his NBA celebrity to “lure high-end bettors” to the table, according to the report. Jones said he knew those games were rigged and that players were being cheated, and he apologized again, telling Marutollo, “I’m really sorry to everyone involved for my actions.”
The AP report said that Jones and his lawyer, Kenneth Montgomery, declined to comment after leaving the courtroom. When he was asked by reporters outside, Jones said only, “To God be the glory,” and the AP reported that he remains free on bail and would not be sentenced until early next year.
As outlined in the court schedule, Jones is scheduled for back-to-back sentencing hearings on Jan. 6. In the sports betting matter, sentencing guidelines cited in the AP report call for 21 to 27 months in prison, while the poker case carries guidelines of 63 to 78 months; prosecutors agreed to subtract 15 months from the sentence in exchange for Jones pleading guilty before April 30, according to the AP. The AP report said the poker case involved more than 10 victims and a loss to them of more than $9.5 million, and that the plea agreements require Jones to give up $73,000, with possible additional restitution orders at sentencing.
This plea also makes Jones the first defendant to plead guilty in the broader gambling sweep prosecutors described as leading to arrests of more than 30 people, including reputed mob figures and other basketball-related defendants. The AP report said prosecutors were also seeking additional charges against another sports betting defendant, former Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier, and that Chauncey Billups, a former head coach, was among those arrested in the sweep.
If the judges follow the guidelines described in the AP report, the structure of the case means Jones’ ultimate prison term will depend on the separate sentencing decisions in each matter. The AP report also said Jones faces a longer prison sentence in the poker games case in part because of the number of victims and the alleged monetary losses, while the sports betting case involves a separate set of conduct tied to wire fraud conspiracy and nonpublic information.
MSI previously reported that an ex-NBA player Damon Jones was set to plead guilty in the basketball gambling sweep as the case moved toward court.