Man who helped recruit players into a sprawling NCAA basketball point-shaving scheme pleads guilty
ABC News
One of the so-called fixers in a sprawling betting scheme to cash in on big bets on rigged NCAA basketball games has pleaded guilty
One of the so-called fixers in a sprawling betting scheme to cash in on big bets on rigged NCAA basketball games pleaded guilty Monday, according to the federal prosecutors' office in Philadelphia.
Jalen Smith appeared in federal court in Philadelphia and pleaded guilty to wire fraud and bribery charges, becoming the first of 26 people charged in the scheme to formally do so. It came a week before the start of March Madness, in which bettors will wager billions legally — and illegally — on the 64 college basketball teams in the tournament.
Smith, of Charlotte, North Carolina, trained and developed local basketball players for professional scouting combines and used those connections with players when he became part of the scheme, prosecutors say.
Charges against Smith were unsealed in January along with 25 others. Besides the fixers who recruited players and placed bets, the charges targeted 17 former college basketball players and four other players who were active with their college teams this season.
More than a dozen players tried to fix games as recently as last season and some helped recruit other players, federal prosecutors said.
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