Court documents reveal that former NBA player Jontay Porter is facing a felony charge in an alleged sports betting scheme.
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| Jontay Porter |
Jontay Porter, 24, was named in a docket filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn on Tuesday. The criminal information sheet, obtained by Legal Sports Report, does not specify the exact charges but indicates that prosecutors are pursuing felony charges. This legal battle follows the indictment of four co-conspirators last month, charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and other offenses related to an alleged sports betting and game-rigging scandal. The league has since imposed a lifetime ban on Porter.
Federal prosecutors allege that Long Phi Pham, Mahmud Mollah, Timothy McCormack, and Ammar Awawdeh were tipped off by Porter with insider information, scheming to profit from knowledge of his plans to exit two games early. According to the complaint, Porter was initially identified only as "Player 1."
In April, the NBA announced a lifetime ban on Porter following an internal investigation. The 6-foot-10 center-forward played four seasons in the NBA.
"A league investigation found that Porter violated league rules by disclosing confidential information to sports bettors, limiting his own participation in one or more games for betting purposes, and betting on NBA games," the league stated.
The league specifically mentioned a March 20 game where Porter disclosed details about his health status to an NBA bettor. Another bettor then placed an $80,000 bet online to win $1.1 million, wagering that Porter would underperform in the game. However, the bet was frozen due to suspicious activity, and the winnings were never paid out.
From January to March 2024, the league reported that Porter placed 13 bets on games using another person’s account. Some included parlay wagers involving his team losing. During this period, the wagers totaled $54,000 and netted over $22,000 in winnings, according to the NBA.
“There is nothing more important than protecting the integrity of NBA competition for our fans, our teams, and everyone associated with our sport, which is why Jontay Porter’s blatant violations of our gaming rules are being met with the most severe punishment,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said regarding the ban.
The NBA shared its investigation results with federal prosecutors.
Porter’s attorney informed the Associated Press (AP) that his client suffered from a gambling addiction.
“Jontay is a good young man with strong faith that will get him through this,” said Porter’s attorney, Jeff Jensen, in a statement to AP. “He was in over his head due to a gambling addiction. He is undergoing treatment and has been fully cooperative with law enforcement.”
The court document filed Tuesday does not specify any future court dates for the case.
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