Federal authorities on Oct. 23 announced charges against Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups in probes related to illegal gambling. Former NBA player Damon Jones was also arrested.

“We are here in New York to announce a historic arrest across a wide, sweeping criminal enterprise that envelops both the NBA and La Cosa Nostra,” FBI Director Kash Patel said at a press conference in Brooklyn announcing the arrests.

The criminal enterprise was allegedly run by the Genovese, Gambino, and Bonanno crime families.

The three were arrested on Oct. 23, according to Patel.

Rozier was arrested in connection with an illegal sports betting scheme, while Billups was apprehended in relation to a rigged poker operation.

Former NBA player Damon Jones was also arrested. He was allegedly connected to both schemes.

The NBA has cooperated with the investigation, according to Joseph Nocella Jr., U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York.

In a statement, the NBA said it is reviewing the indictments and that Rozier and Billups have been placed on leave from their respective teams. The league also stated that it would continue to cooperate with investigators.

“We take these allegations with the utmost seriousness, and the integrity of our game remains our top priority,” the NBA stated.

Patel said: “The fraud is mind-boggling. ... We’re talking about tens of millions of dollars in fraud and theft and robbery across a multi-years investigation.”

Billups played in the NBA for 17 years, suiting up for the Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors, Denver Nuggets, Detroit Pistons, Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, and Los Angeles Clippers. A five-time All-Star, he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2024.

He has been the head coach of the Trail Blazers since 2021.

Nocella said that the case where Billups was indicted was “a nationwide scheme to rig illegal poker games.”

“These defendants ... used high-tech cheating technology to steal millions of dollars from victims in underground poker games that were secretly fixed,” Nocella said.

Rozier has been in the NBA for 10 years. Before playing for the Heat, he played for the Celtics and Charlotte Hornets.

Nocella said that Rozier’s case is “one of the most brazen sports corruption schemes since online sports betting became widely legalized in the United States.”

“This scheme is an insider sports betting conspiracy that exploited confidential information about National Basketball Association athletes and teams,” Nocella said.

Rozier and Billups will be arraigned in federal court in Orlando and Portland, respectively, on the afternoon of Oct. 23.

About 30 people have been in custody in connection with the gambling operations, which spanned at least 11 states.

The Trail Blazers did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.

The Heat declined to comment and referred The Epoch Times to the NBA statement.