Federal prosecutors in the United States have accused 20 people of manipulating the results of college basketball games in the U.S. and professional games in China, an investigation that coincides with other probes into illegal betting in the NBA and NCAA. According to court documents, the accused 'participated in a points manipulation scheme that involved more than 39 players from more than 17 different men's Division I college basketball teams, who then fixed and attempted to fix more than 29 games for millions of dollars in betting.' Among the suspects in the FBI investigation are 16 former college basketball players, two coaches, and two 'high-risk sports bettors.' The plot began in September 2022 when the accused bribed players from the Chinese Basketball Association to manipulate the results of their games, so that the final margin of victory or defeat would benefit the bettors. This conspiracy spread to the American college basketball league and affected games played by Western Michigan University, Butler, St. John's, Tulane, East Carolina, McNeese State, Nicholls State, St. Louis University, Duquesne, La Salle, Fordham, SUNY Buffalo, Kent State, Ohio University, Georgetown, and DePaul, according to investigators. The charges come three months after Miami Heat player Terry Rozier and Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups were arrested in October for alleged illegal betting in the NBA. NCAA suspended three male college basketball players last September for fixing the results of games in which they participated, as concern grows over the rise of sports betting and its regulation.
