Brooklyn Man Charged In Sports Betting Scheme Linked To NBA Player

BROOKLYN, NY — A 38-year-old Brooklyn man has been charged in a scheme to defraud a sports betting company by placing “under prop” bets on an NBA player who cooperated with them, federal prosecutors announced Tuesday.

Long Phi Pham and three co-conspirators — who remain at large — placed “under prop” bets on an unnamed NBA player's performance in two games in January and March this year, knowing in advance that the player would not play in the game, prosecutors said.

If convicted of wire fraud, the Pham faces up to 20 years in prison, prosecutors said.

In early 2024, the NBA player had amassed large gambling debts was encouraged by the defendants to clear those debts by withdrawing from certain games prematurely to ensure that under prop bets were successful, prosecutors said.

Before a January 26 game, the player told Pham that he would be removing himself early from the game, due to a corneal abrasion, prosecutors said.

After playing just four minutes, the player removed himself from the game and with his stat line ensured that the defendants and others won the "under prop" bet, prosecutors said.

In one case, a relative of a co-conspirator placed a $10,000 parlay bet through a betting company on the "under" for the player's three pointers, assists and steals. As a result of the player coming out of the game early, the bet was successful, and they won $85,000, prosecutors said.

Before a March 20 game, Pham along with his co-conspirators discussed in a group chat that the player would be again removing himself early from the game, claiming that he felt ill. They agreed to share the profits for money won on successful under bets placed, and that Pham would receive approximately 24% of the profits, prosecutors said.

Pham and his co-conspirators netted over $1 million in profits by wagering the under on prop bets related to the player, prosecutors said.

“This prosecution serves as a warning that fraud and dishonesty in professional sports will not be tolerated, and those who engage in this flagrant flouting of the law will be prosecuted," United States Attorney Breon Peace said.

The following month, the unnamed player warned Pham and wrote in a group chat that they “might just get hit with a rico,” referring to a racketeering charge, and asked if the group chat members had “delete[d] all the stuff” from their personal cell phones, prosecutors said.