1 hour ago
3
Former Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig faces up to 15 years successful situation aft helium was convicted Friday of national charges successful an amerciable sports gambling case.
Puig, 35, was recovered blameworthy of obstruction of justness and making mendacious statements to national investigators pursuing a astir two-week proceedings successful downtown Los Angeles.
In November 2022, prosecutors said that Puig was set to plead guilty to lying astir his engagement successful sports betting, but helium withdrew from that plea deal little than 2 weeks later, stating that helium "never should person agreed to plead blameworthy to a transgression I did not commit."
A Los Angeles justice said that the woody was not binding due to the fact that it was not formally entered successful court. He was initially acceptable to plead blameworthy to a azygous number of lying to national authorities, was eligible for probation and was to wage a good of astatine slightest $55,000 earlier helium withdrew.
In February 2023, helium pleaded not guilty to each charges, and his lawsuit was sent to trial. Puig is present scheduled to beryllium sentenced connected May 26.
FILE -- Yasiel Puig of the Los Angeles Dodgers walks backmost to the dugout aft flying retired successful the ninth inning during Game 3 of the 2018 World Series against the Boston Red Sox astatine Dodger Stadium. Oct. 26, 2018.
Rob Tringali/MLB via Getty Images
The lawsuit against Puig comes from a 2017 probe into an amerciable gambling concern being orchestrated by erstwhile nonrecreational shot subordinate Wayne Nix, who besides awaits sentencing aft pleading blameworthy to conspiracy to run an amerciable gambling concern and subscribing to a mendacious taxation instrumentality successful 2022.
While investigators were looking into Nix, they recovered that Puig began placing bets connected games starting successful May of 2019 done 1 of Nix's associates.
A news merchandise from the U.S. Department of Justice says that Puig owed Nix's concern astir $283,000 successful gambling losses wrong a month. They besides showed that betwixt July and September of that year, helium had placed 899 bets connected assorted sports done a website associated with Nix. Some of his wagers were placed connected tennis, football, and hoops games, but it was ne'er noted whether helium stake connected baseball.
During a 90-minute interrogation with national investigators successful 2022, which was held via video league with his ineligible team, Puig denied knowing Nix's gambling concern and his associates. Prosecutors said that contempt being warned that lying to national agents is simply a crime, helium lied respective times.
In a WhatsApp connection sent to a person 2 months later, Puig admitted to "lying to national agents and to obstructing their expansive assemblage probe during his interview," national prosecutors said. They besides argued that helium lied connected a U.S. authorities migration signifier and portion nether oath during his naturalization interrogation successful 2019, erstwhile helium stated helium had ne'er been engaged successful amerciable gambling.
Attorneys argued that Puig, who they said has a third-grade education, besides had "untreated intelligence issues, and did not person his ain interpreter oregon transgression ineligible counsel with him."
The mendacious connection complaint carries a imaginable condemnation of up to 5 years successful prison, portion the obstruction of justness complaint carries up to 10-years imprisonment, prosecutors noted.
"Puig remains escaped connected his ain idiosyncratic recognizance," said the DOJ's quality release.
Puig signed with the Dodgers successful 2012 aft defecting from his location state of Cuba. He played successful six seasons with the Boys successful Blue earlier helium was traded to the Cincinnati Reds successful 2019. He was traded again aboriginal that play to the Cleveland Guardians. It was his past play with Major League Baseball, aft helium missed the shortened 2020 season.
Most recently, helium has played with the Kiwoom Heroes of the KBO League successful South Korea and El Águila de Veracruz successful the Mexican League.
English (US) ·