A hearing in Brooklyn was packed as Mr. Billups and 30 other defendants answered charges in a sweeping federal indictment involving rigged poker games. Source: New York Times
Posts published in “Organized Crime”
Mafia Member Recruited Son’s Friends for Gambling Ring, Prosecutors Say
By Gotham Rex on November 13, 2025
Prosecutors say the New Jersey man farmed out his betting operations, and that some participants were college athletes. Gambling charges are on the rise throughout collegiate and professional sports in the United States. Source: New York Times
New York Is the Center of Basketball. And Basketball Betting Scandals.
By Gotham Rex on October 25, 2025
Point shaving. Gambling rings. Illegal poker games. Prosecutors in New York have seen it all. Source: New York Times
U.S. Details How Mob and Ex-NBA Players Lured High Rollers Into Poker Trap
By Gotham Rex on October 24, 2025
A Manhattan apartment was at the center of a Mafia-run ring that used former N.B.A. players as bait and technology to read cards, prosecutors say. Source: New York Times
U.S. Charges N.B.A. Figures in Gambling Schemes That Tainted Games
By Gotham Rex on October 23, 2025
Terry Rozier, a Miami Heat guard, and Chauncey Billups, coach of the Portland Trail Blazers, were among those arrested. Two indictments spanned the worlds of professional sports, Mafia families and online betting. Source: New York Times
Gambinos and Other NYC Mob Families Are Still in Business
By Gotham Rex on October 23, 2025
Four of the city’s five Mafia families were part of a high-tech scheme that netted $7 million, prosecutors said, by fleecing high rollers at illegal poker games. Source: New York Times
Jay Goldberg, Tenacious Lawyer for Celebrities, Dies at 89
By Gotham Rex on December 14, 2022
He defended Donald Trump, Sean Combs, Bono, the Rolling Stones, the Hells Angels and mob figures with wit and verve. Source: New York Times
This Sunday, the Marathon’s Back in Full Swing
By Gotham Rex on November 4, 2022
After a pandemic limitation last year, the marathon expects 50,000 runners, and soon, a new leader will take over Road Runners, which organizes the race. Source: New York Times
NYC Buildings Chief Resigns as Prosecutors Examine Gambling Ties
By Gotham Rex on November 3, 2022
Eric Ulrich, a former city councilman under investigation from Manhattan prosecutors, resigned on Thursday from his post as commissioner of the city’s Buildings Department. Source: New York Times
Trump Companies’ Defense Lawyers Are an Eclectic Team
By Gotham Rex on October 31, 2022
The defense team includes a personal injury lawyer from Philadelphia and two New York criminal lawyers who have defended mobsters and white collar defendants. Source: New York Times
Louis Gigante, Priest Who Led South Bronx Revival, Dies at 90
By Gotham Rex on October 23, 2022
The brother of a convicted Mafia boss, he became a Democratic Party leader and a city councilman, and helped build thousands of units of housing. Source: New York Times
The Day I Stood in the Path of a Driverless Bus
By Gotham Rex on October 20, 2022
The Port Authority is testing electric vehicles with no driver for possible use at airports. It turns out they do stop if a pedestrian is in a crosswalk. Source: New York Times
A NYC Mobster Dodged Hit After Hit. His Son Finally Got Him.
By Gotham Rex on October 19, 2022
Anthony Zottola was convicted of murder-for-hire Wednesday. Prosecutors say he wanted the real estate business of his father, Sylvester, a reputed Bonnano crime family associate. Source: New York Times
Andrew J. Maloney, Prosecutor Who Took Down John Gotti, Dies at 90
By Gotham Rex on August 18, 2022
A street-smart U.S. attorney, he won a conviction against the Mafia boss after several previous efforts failed. Source: New York Times
Two of New York’s Oldest Mafia Clans Charged in Money Laundering Scheme
By Gotham Rex on August 16, 2022
Nine members and associates of the Genovese and Bonanno families were charged in a case that centered on secret gambling parlors in Queens and Long Island. Source: New York Times