(NewsReady.com) – The NBA handed down a lifetime ban for Jontay Porter earlier this year. The basketball player was accused of throwing games. Now, a man connected to the former NBA player has been arrested.
On Tuesday, June 4, the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York announced a criminal complaint was filed against Long Phi Pham, known as “Bruce.” He’s accused of a conspiracy to defraud a sports betting company. Law enforcement arrested Pham at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Monday when he tried to board a flight to Australia with a one-way ticket.
According to the DOJ, Pham and his co-conspirators placed proposition bets on the way Porter was playing in particular games. They knew before the games that the former Toronto Raptors forward would withdraw from the games for health reasons. Prosecutors believe Porter accumulated a large amount of gambling debt with some of the co-conspirators.
Those co-conspirators reportedly told Porter he could pay down the debt by withdrawing from some of the games prematurely. The former basketball player allegedly agreed and withdrew from a January 22, 2024, game after complaining about an eye injury, a January 26 game after saying the injury was still bothering him, and a March 20 game because he didn’t feel good.
On April 4, Porter allegedly messaged Pham and the others to warn them they might get hit with a racketeering charge. He was banned from playing in the NBA that same month after an investigation by the league uncovered the alleged conspiracy.
The defendant is now being charged with wire fraud and faces up to 20 years in prison. Prosecutors have accused him of trying to flee the country when he learned about the investigation. US Magistrate Judge Cheryl Pollak allowed him to be released on house arrest on a $750,000 bond.
Porter has not commented on the arrest or his alleged participation.
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