A man from Brooklyn has pleaded guilty in a sports betting scandal that had an impact on former NBA player Jontay Porter resulting in Porter’s permanent exclusion from the league earlier this year.
Long Phi Pham Confesses to Wire Fraud
Long Phi Pham also called Bruce Pham confessed in federal court to plotting to commit wire fraud in a plan where Porter underperformed in two games, reported Associated Press. Pham is set to attend a sentencing hearing in April 2025 where he might receive up to 20 years in prison.
The case revolves around a scheme Pham cooked up with three other guys to rig betting results by talking Porter into faking injuries and dropping out of games. The group had a chance to pocket over $1 million by betting against Porter’s expected performance, according to prosecutors. But their plan started to fall apart when a betting company got suspicious and stopped paying out a big chunk of the winnings.
Court papers reveal that Pham and his partners first made a big profit in January when Porter left a game against the Los Angeles Clippers. He cited an eye problem after playing for just four minutes. This quick exit caused his stats to fall below betting predictions leading to a $40,250 payout for one of Pham’s accomplices.
A similar situation happened in March. Pham and the group talked about their plan in a Telegram group chat. They placed more bets on Porter thinking he would leave a game against the Sacramento Kings. As they had planned, Porter played three minutes before leaving saying he felt sick. His poor showing let the group make big profits again, prosecutors say.
Criminal Complaint Reveals Porter’s Concerns Over Investigation and Potential Charges
The criminal complaint also showed that Porter knew about the investigation and worried in a group chat. He even joked that they “might just get hit with a RICO” charge and told the others to erase evidence from their phones that could get them in trouble.
Pham’s part in the illegal operation stopped in June when police arrested him at JFK International Airport as he tried to get on a plane to Australia. The authorities thought he was trying to run away from being charged, but his lawyer said Pham, who plays poker for a living, was just going to a tournament. After this, they let him go after he paid a $750,000 bond.
As Pham waits to hear his sentence, his accomplices have not yet entered pleas. Porter, who owned up to his part in the plan in July, will face sentencing on December 18. His gambling debts pushed him to join the scheme, which in the end got him kicked out of the NBA. Porter’s legal problems got even worse as the Ontario Provincial Police kept looking into the case, which might result in more charges.