Man who helped recruit players into a sprawling NCAA basketball point-shaving scheme pleads guilty

Source: AP

By MARC LEVY
Updated 7:27 AM CDT, March 10, 2026

One of the so-called fixers in a sprawling betting scheme that allegedly raked in millions of dollars off of big bets on rigged NCAA basketball games pleaded guilty Monday.

Jalen Smith appeared in federal court in Philadelphia and pleaded guilty to wire fraud and bribery charges, becoming the first of 26 people charged in the scheme to formally do so. It came a week before the start of March Madness, in which bettors will wager billions legally — and illegally — on the 68 college basketball teams in the tournament.

Smith, of Charlotte, North Carolina, trained and developed local basketball players for professional scouting combines and used those connections with players when he became part of the scheme, according to prosecutors.

The charges against Smith and 25 others were unsealed in January. Smith’s lawyer, Rocco Cipparone, said in an interview that Smith pleaded guilty to get the matter behind him, serve whatever sentence he’ll be given and “move forward in his life in a positive direction.”

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/college-basketball-betting-charges-bribery-ncaa-3d06ea8a78cd0016fc12f4016ce9fca9