Jontay Porter, who was banned from the NBA over sports betting fraud, has been denied a motion to get his passport back before his sentencing. Filed yesterday, July 16, the request sought to allow the player to play basketball in Greece.
Porter requested four things, namely to have his passport back, to be allowed to travel to Europe, to live in Patras, Greece, and to play basketball in the city. Porter’s lawyer, Jeff Benson, described this as a “very fortunate and quickly diminishing opportunity to earn income through his primary skillset.”
The lawyer added that Porter is unlikely to receive such an opportunity again, especially considering that Porter has been banned from the NBA for a lifetime.
According to the motion, Porter would have gone to Greece to live with his wife and expected newborn. Lawyer Benson promised that this client would be able to return to New York to fulfill his court obligations and continue his problem gambling treatment.
While not opposed by the prosecution, the motion was struck down by Judge LaShann DeArcy Hall. If it was approved, it would have marked the first time Porter had played professionally in Europe.
Porter Committed Fraud in Hopes of Settling Gambling Debt
Set to be sentenced toward the end of the year, the basketball athlete hoped to be able to play before that. For context, Porter pled guilty last week, admitting to having been involved in a huge NBA gambling scandal. To elaborate, the athlete admitted to having removed himself from two NBA games in order to manipulate the outcome and help others win bets.
Porter, as it turns out had accumulated significant gambling debts and agreed to exit games early by feigning injury or illness, thus facilitating the fraudulent bet. One of his accomplices reportedly placed an $80,000 bet on a parlay involving Porter and won $1.1 million.
Speaking of accomplices, four other people have been charged with offenses in relation to this scandal as well.
Porter was released on a $250,000 bond and is set to be sentenced in December. The prosecution hopes to have him serve a sentence of between 41-51 months and pay over $450,000 in fines.
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