New York (AFP) – Cleveland Guardians pitchers Emmanuel Clase and Luis Ortiz were indicted Sunday in New York on federal charges involving rigged bets on individual pitches in Major League Baseball games. The Dominican right-handers had been placed on leave by MLB since July while the league conducted an investigation into sports gambling surrounding them. Ortiz was arrested Sunday in Boston and will appear in court on Monday, while Clase is not in custody.
Prosecutors in Brooklyn charged Clase, a 27-year-old closing reliever, and Ortiz, a 26-year-old starter, with being part of a scheme with corrupt bettors who placed hundreds of thousands of dollars in wagers on specific throws. Charges included wire fraud conspiracy, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery, and money laundering conspiracy.
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“Professional athletes, like Luis Leandro Ortiz and Emmanuel Clase de la Cruz, hold a position of trust — not only with their teammates and their professional leagues, but with fans who believe in fair play,” US attorney Joseph Nocella said. “As alleged, the defendants sold that trust to gamblers by fixing pitches,” he added. “When corruption infiltrates the sport, it brings disgrace not only to the participants but damages the public trust in an institution that is vital and dear to all of us.”
The announcement follows the late October arrests of two prominent NBA basketball figures, Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and Portland Trail Blazers coach Chauncey Billups, in a separate far-ranging probe into illegal gambling. Prosecutors in the baseball case said the pitchers agreed in advance with their co-conspirators on specific pitches they would throw, with the bettors using that inside information to place hundreds of fraudulent bets.
Clase agreed to the scheme around May 2023 to rig “prop” bets on particular pitches he threw, with wagers on the speed and type of throws he would make, coordinating with Clase at times during games, prosecutors said. “Clase often threw these rigged pitches on the first pitch of an at-bat,” a statement from prosecutors said. “To ensure certain pitches were called as balls, Clase threw many of them in the dirt, well outside the strike zone.” Clase received kickbacks from the bettors for the information and sometimes provided money to finance the scheme, according to charges. Among the rigged pitches was one in New York in a game against the host Mets. Prosecutors claimed Clase caused his co-conspirator bettors to win at least $400,000 in fraudulent wagers.
This past June, charges claim, Ortiz joined the conspiracy, agreeing in advance to throw balls rather than strikes on certain pitches in two games in exchange for bribes and kickbacks. Before a game on June 15, Ortiz allegedly agreed to throw a ball on a particular pitch in exchange for a $5,000 bribe, with Clase getting a $5,000 bribe for arranging the rigged pitch. Ortiz allegedly agreed to throw another rigged pitch on June 27 in exchange for a $7,000 bribe for himself and another for Clase.
Clase allegedly withdrew $50,000 in cash and provided $15,000 to a co-conspirator to wager on Ortiz’s rigged pitch during the June 27 contest, with Ortiz producing at least $60,000 in winning wagers for the co-conspirators. Each defendant faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison on wire fraud conspiracy, 20 years for honest services wire fraud conspiracy, five years on conspiracy to influence sporting contests by bribery, and 20 years on the money laundering conspiracy charge.
© 2024 AFP
