In the poker case, Billups and Jones are accused of using their celebrity to lure people into playing in poker games that were rigged by the Mafia, Nocella said. The organizers allegedly used “sophisticated cheating technologies,” including shuffling machines that could read the cards in the deck, poker chip trays with hidden cameras, special contact lenses and glasses that could read pre-marked cards, and an X-ray table that could read cards facedown on the table, according to Nocella.
Once the so-called “fish” lost, the Mafia used extortion and violence to make sure they paid their gambling debts, Nocella said. Investigators found that the scheme involved members and associates of the Bonanno, Gambino, Lucchese and Genovese crime families, New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said.
Since April 2019, victims have lost at least $7 million in the rigged poker games, according to the indictment, with one victim alone losing $1.8 million.