Mafia-Linked Rigged Poker, NBA Figures Charged

A federal indictment unsealed in Brooklyn charges 31 people in a multimillion-dollar, Mafia-linked scheme that prosecutors say rigged private poker games and laundered winnings from January 2022 through October 2023. Authorities allege the cheating operation used high-tech tools — modified shuffling machines, X‑ray card tables, specially designed contact lenses and sunglasses, and wireless transmission systems — to let teams read cards in real time. The indictment names members and associates of the Bonanno, Gambino and Genovese families and includes arrests in New Jersey of figures such as Julius Ziliani, Osman “Albanian Bruce” Hoti and Marco Garzon, tied to extortion and violent enforcement. High-profile basketball figures Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier and Damon Jones are among those charged; prosecutors allege some athletes served as “face cards,” and Rozier faces a separate indictment alleging he altered play to benefit bettors. Charges span wire fraud, money laundering, illegal gambling, extortion and robbery, and several defendants have denied wrongdoing.