re: Yahoo: NCAA waiting for feds to finish

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Did you read the document?

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relevant portions

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The first scheme alleged in the Complaints entailed bribes by DAWKINS and SOOD, among others, to four men’s basketball coaches, PERSON, EVANS, RICHARDSON and BLAND, in exchange for the coaches’ agreement to direct players under their control, and the players’ families, to retain DAWKINS and SOOD once the players entered the NBA. These corrupt arrangements, which turn on the coaches’ abuse of their positions of trust at the universities, are valuable both to the coaches, who receive cash bribes, and to the bribe-payors, for whom securing a future NBA player as a client can prove extremely profitable.

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Beginning in or around 2016, and continuing into 2017, PERSON, a former NBA player and the associate head coach at University-1, abused his coaching position at University-1 to solicit and obtain approximately $91,500 in bribe payments from a financial advisor and business manager for professional athletes, who, unbeknownst to PERSON, was providing information to law enforcement (“CW-1”). In exchange for the bribes, PERSON agreed to direct certain University-1 basketball players to retain the services of CW-1 when those student-athletes entered the NBA. The bribe payments initially were arranged by MICHEL, who had a preexisting relationship with PERSON and operated a clothing store that specialized in making bespoke suits for professional athletes. Over the course of the scheme, PERSON did, in fact, arrange multiple meetings between CW-1 and players and/or their family members, in which he falsely touted CW-1’s qualifications without disclosing that he was being bribed to recommend CW-1. For example, at one meeting, PERSON told the mother of a player at University-1 that CW-1 was PERSON’s own financial advisor and had also advised NBA Hall of Fame inductee (and University-1 alumnus) Charles Barkley, neither of which was true. PERSON similarly told another player that CW-1 would purchase him a separate cell phone over which they could communicate so as to conceal the nature of the scheme.

In addition to the bribe payments that PERSON solicited and received, PERSON also arranged for CW-1 to make payments directly to the families of the players PERSON was steering to CW-1. PERSON further claimed to have given approximately $18,500 of the bribe money he received to the families of two student-athletes whom PERSON sought to steer to retain CW-1.

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So if the whole scheme was to pay those players to leave school, why were those players suspended and then later played this year? The answer is because that wasn't the nature of the business offer. It was a bribe for a future business relationship when they did leave school. This is exactly how street agents operate on the AAU circuit. They form the relationships when the players are young in hopes of reaping the benefits when they're in the league.

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According to prosecutors, Person said: "Don't say nothing to anybody. ... Don't share with your sisters, don't share with any of the teammates, that's very important cause this is a violation ... of rules, but this is how the NBA players get it done, they get early relationships, and they form partnerships."

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What Wade is accused of doing is offering players illegal benefits for their services.

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You got a link to these accusations?

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I did read the document for that trial.

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it's the same indictment. Person plead guilty, Dawkins did not. Person did not have a trial.

You clearly did not read the document. Person was working for Dawkins. All the coaches involved plead out. The guys they were working for did not.

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The NCAA considers both violations.

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We will see how the NCAA differentiates the two over the next several years.

The fact that the NCAA ruled the two players ineligible for X amount of time, before reinstating them, tells me that no further action will be taken against Auburn.

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declaring nothing to see here

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neither is anyone else

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Federal authorities have given NCAA officials their approval to move ahead with an investigation of alleged rules violations that came to light during the first of three federal criminal trials involving pay-for-play schemes and other corruption in college basketball, ESPN has confirmed.

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what does that even mean? The feds can't STOP an NCAA investigation, OR approve it.

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ESPN reported in February that as many as three dozen Division I programs, including many of the sport's traditional powers, might be facing NCAA sanctions once the federal government releases information that it acquired during its clandestine, three-year investigation.

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pure speculation by ESPN. "Might be facing". Of course. Alabama might be facing an investigation too; or they might not.

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Among the most revealing evidence turned over to the NCAA, according to documents obtained by Outside the Lines, is a business plan that aspiring agent Christian Dawkins emailed to his business partners on Sept. 5, 2017.

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This is for those who still claim the FEDS care nothing about helping with the NCAA aspect of this case.

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Just a little comprehension, can we try using it?

The feds turned over an email that was created by the subject of their investigation, Christian Dawkins. That's the man they have on trial, who has been convicted, and who was the target of the wiretap.

Wade is on that wiretap, but nothing related to Wade seems to be linked to Dawkins or his business. He isn't negotiating with Dawkins, he's telling him a story.
The transcript doesn't seem to implicate Wade to CRIMINAL activity, nor does it link him to Dawkins in actual dealings. He just talked to him about something not criminal.

That is not subject to public release; that violates Wade's personal privacy.

The federal government can not wiretap you without cause, and turn over non-criminal information to private/civilian parties, just because.

If DAWKINS had been linked to LSU, or Wade directly in regards to a player, then I'd be worried about this a lot more. But he wasn't.

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In exchange for the bribes, PERSON agreed to direct certain University-1 basketball players to retain the services of CW-1 when those student-athletes entered the NBA. [...] Over the course of the scheme, PERSON did, in fact, arrange multiple meetings between CW-1 and players and/or their family members, in which he falsely touted CW-1’s qualifications without disclosing that he was being bribed to recommend CW-1

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This is the crux of the case. The Feds aren't interested in Auburn or LSU being defrauded. The defense made that strawman, as far as I could tell, and then tried to muddy the waters by leaking those tapes of Wade to show that he knew. The Feds don't care about that.

What Person did is considered fraud to the players and their families because he was acting in the "trusted advisor" role. You mess that role up with bribery and you get into words like fraud and racketeering.

Will Wade is nowhere on the Feds radar. And I also think we've heard the absolute worst of the transcript, but I could be wrong.

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This is the crux of the case. The Feds aren't interested in Auburn or LSU being defrauded. The defense made that strawman, as far as I could tell, and then tried to muddy the waters by leaking those tapes of Wade to show that he knew. The Feds don't care about that.

What Person did is considered fraud to the players and their families because he was acting in the "trusted advisor" role. You mess that role up with bribery and you get into words like fraud and racketeering.

Will Wade is nowhere on the Feds radar. And I also think we've heard the absolute worst of the transcript, but I could be wrong.

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the feds are only interested because hundred of thousands of dollars exchanged hands with none of that money being reported or taxes paid. Will Wade is not a person of interest for them because no money exchanging hands on the part of Wade or LSU was found in their investigation, otherwise Wade would have been indicted along with the other coaches that were.

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And I also think we've heard the absolute worst of the transcript, but I could be wrong.

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I tend to agree, but I also don't think we'll ever find the answer to that question because I don't believe the transcripts and/or wire tap recordings of Wade will ever see the light of day in Court. not to mention he may not even have to testify if the feds prevail on their pre-trial Motion. I don't foresee them being admitted this time around because they are no more relevant to this trial than they were to the previous trial. And if they aren't admitted into the record, then the NCAA won't be privy to them either absent Wade giving his consent, which he would obviously never do. This ties into the federal privacy act statute that I have referenced in the past.

So while I certainly believe an investigation will inevitably follow and also believe Wade very likely cheated, I think the NCAA is going to have a difficult time getting what they need to prove it and meet their burden under NCAA bylaws.

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The Feds aren't interested in Auburn or LSU being defrauded. The defense made that strawman, as far as I could tell, and then tried to muddy the waters by leaking those tapes of Wade to show that he knew. The Feds don't care about that.

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In the case of Bowen, who was restitution ordered to be paid to?

I am in your head.

It's amazing how many LSU jimmies I have rustled simply by stating the facts that this isn't over for you. It hasn't even begun yet.