Dealers, Defendants & the Dons: Billups, Rozier and the Mafia Case (10/24/25)

The Federal Bureau of Investigation wrapped up a massive federal investigation on October 23 2025 that took down 30+ people across 11 states for illegal gambling and sports-betting schemes. One major case, dubbed “Operation Royal Flush,” involved rigged high-stakes poker games backed by Mafia families—complete with manipulated shuffling machines, even X-ray tables to cheat players. Billups, head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers, was arrested in Oregon for participating in one of the rigged games; prosecutors say he acted as a “face card” to lure bettors and was paid to attend games he knew were fixed. In a related but separate probe, the FBI also charged players and coaches for using inside information from NBA teams to place bets. For example, Terry Rozier of the Miami Heat was accused of providing confidential team info so that bets could be placed advantageously. Billups wasn’t charged for this insider betting part, but he is facing serious wire-fraud and money-laundering charges for the poker ring. to contact me: [email protected]