Former Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier was hit with fresh federal charges in Brooklyn on Thursday, as prosecutors accused him of accepting a bribe in exchange for deliberately exiting an NBA game early in March 2023. The superseding indictment charges Rozier, 32, with bribery in sporting contests and honest services wire fraud conspiracy, marking an escalation of a case that has been unfolding since December.
Last year, Rozier was initially charged with wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy. He pleaded not guilty and has been fighting to have the charges tossed. Thursday’s filing adds bribery counts focused on the specific allegation that the former guard was paid to manipulate his own playing time, a move that could have given gamblers an unfair edge on prop bets — wagers tied to individual player statistics and game events.
Rozier’s attorneys, Jim Trusty and Eric Siegle, did not immediately return messages from the Associated Press on Thursday. In earlier court filings, they have argued that the prosecution’s core legal theory is flawed. They contend that under a recent Supreme Court ruling that narrowed the scope of federal wire fraud to schemes aimed at obtaining money or property — not mere deception — Rozier’s alleged conduct, even if proven, does not constitute a federal crime. The government, they say, is stretching a statute designed to protect tangible assets to cover the integrity of sports betting markets.
The high court’s decision in Ciminelli v. United States, issued in 2023, limited wire fraud to schemes that target “money or property.” The defense maintains that sportsbooks’ interest in receiving “honest” bets does not qualify as a property interest under that standard. U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert, who is presiding over the case, has not yet ruled on the motion to dismiss.
The broader investigation has already secured a guilty plea from Damon Jones, a self-described gambling guru who admitted to bribing players at multiple collegiate and professional levels. Jones, 49, pleaded guilty in April to conspiracy to commit sports bribery and wire fraud, admitting he paid athletes to manipulate games so he could win bets. The probe has rattled the sports world as legalized gambling expands across the U.S., raising new questions about the vulnerability of athletes to corrupting influences. The case is being prosecuted in the Eastern District of New York.