Former Kentucky football player De’Niro Laster was one of more than 30 people arrested Thursday amid an FBI investigation into NBA gambling. According to an indictment obtained by the New York Times, Laster is accused of helping to funnel information from then-Charlotte Hornets guard Terry Rozier to bettors after Rozier informed him he planned to leave a March 2023 game against the New Orleans Pelicans early even though he was not listed on the team’s injury report. Laster played football at Kentucky for two years from 2015 to 2016. Rozier played basketball at Louisville from 2013 to 2015. The two attended high school together in Cleveland. None of the allegations in the indictment relate to their time as college athletes in Kentucky.
A childhood friend of Rozier, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Laster began his college football career at Minnesota in 2013. He redshirted during his first college season, then played in nine games as a redshirt freshman there in 2014. Laster transferred to Kentucky prior to the 2015 season. He sat out that year per NCAA transfer rules at the time. He totaled 14 tackles in five games for the Wildcats in 2016 before suffering a season-ending knee injury. Laster then transferred to North Carolina Central in 2017. In his final college season, Laster totaled 31 tackles in 10 games. What are the accusations against De’Niro Laster? According to the indictment obtained by the New York Times, Rozier allegedly informed Laster he was going to fake an injury in the first quarter of the March 23, 2023, game against the Pelicans so Laster could wager on various prop bets about Rozier’s performance in the game. Laster is accused of then selling that information to a sports bettor named Marves Fairley and an unnamed NBA player for about $100,000. A relative of Laster’s allegedly opened an online betting account the morning of the game to place a $4,000 parlay on bets that Rozier would record less than statistical totals set by sportsbooks. Prosecutors allege Rozier then paid for Laster to travel to Philadelphia to collect his portion of the gambling winnings from Fairley. Laster drove from Philadelphia to Rozier’s Charlotte home to count the winnings together, according to the indictment. Laster was arrested Thursday in Cleveland, according to the Plain Dealer.
No Comment! Be the first one.