Gilbert Arenas wasted no time claiming he was the one who snitched on Chauncey Billups and Terry Rozier after they were arrested as part of an FBI probe last week. But, jokes aside, the arrest of Shane Hennen, a sports betting guru and convicted felon, is now thought to have sparked the investigation.
Hennen, who has been named in the indictment and is one of the 34 people arrested, was caught trying to flee the United States with $10,000 and a one-way ticket to Colombia back in January.
The 40-year-old was busted at the Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas, with federal agents taking him into custody on a separate case: the one involving former NBA player Jontay Porter, who has been banned from the league for life.
Shane Hennen Reportedly Entered Plea Deal
Hennen was accused of masterminding the scheme in which Porter would take himself out of games with fake injuries to influence betting results. The former Toronto Raptors center has since pleaded guilty and is awaiting sentencing.
According to court documents cited by the New York Post, Hennen entered into plea negotiations with prosecutors.
“The seedy affair turned out to be a mere curtain-raiser to a wider gambling case pursued by the feds, who arrested 31 people Thursday — including wiseguys from four Mafia families and Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and former NBA player Damon Jones,” the outlet notes.
He has been charged in both cases: the rigged poker game scheme Billups is accused of participating in, and the illegal betting relating to Rozier.
Hennen is also accused of supplying the technology the mob used to cheat poker players while he’s said to have instructed others to bet on Rozier’s under after the guard agreed to pull himself out of a game with a fake injury while playing for the Charlotte Hornets in 2023.
He allegedly made bets on Porter’s bogus injuries himself.
