WASHINGTON, Jan 15 (Reuters) – U.S. authorities have charged 20 people with rigging college basketball and Chinese Basketball Association games, according to a federal indictment released on Thursday, including some individuals previously charged in an NBA-related gambling probe. The charges were unsealed by federal prosecutors in Philadelphia following a grand jury and accuse the defendants […]
U.S.
US charges 20 people with rigging college, Chinese basketball games
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WASHINGTON, Jan 15 (Reuters) – U.S. authorities have charged 20 people with rigging college basketball and Chinese Basketball Association games, according to a federal indictment released on Thursday, including some individuals previously charged in an NBA-related gambling probe.
The charges were unsealed by federal prosecutors in Philadelphia following a grand jury and accuse the defendants of conspiring on games from about September 2022 through February 2025.
During the 2022-2023 CBA season, the individuals sought to “fix” Chinese Basketball Association men’s basketball games by “point shaving,” prosecutors alleged in the documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Point shaving is a form of cheating in which individuals try to manipulate the margin of victory.
Some of those charged also allegedly sought to target games at Nicholls State University, Tulane University, Northwestern State University, La Salle University, DePaul University, Robert Morris University, University of Southern Mississippi and North Carolina A&T State University.
Players at Kennesaw State University, Coppin State University, University of New Orleans, Abilene Christian University, Eastern Michigan and Alabama State University were also targeted as part of the scheme, according to the indictment, which was reported earlier by NBC News.
Prosecutors’ charges include bribery in sporting contests and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
(Reporting by Susan Heavey and Nate Raymond; Editing by Doina Chiacu, Rod Nickel)