Investigating the FBI’s college basketball corruption probe

Good morning and welcome to Essential California Newsletter. Is Friday, March 10. I’m Nathan Fenno, an investigative reporter focused on sports.

Few events on the sports calendar rival the annual NCAA basketball extravaganza. Shooting at full speed. Triumphant underdogs. Renowned schools chasing a championship. And, of course, tens of millions of fans filling in brackets to predict the outcome of each match.

The three-week tournament, which begins next week and includes men’s first- and second-round games at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, generated more than $800 million in television revenue for the NCAA last year. That is dwarfed by the $3.1 billion from the American Gaming Assn. The projected bet would be on the 2022 tournament. Even the bleeding seats to the men’s title game in Houston this year are selling on the secondary market for $224 each. March Madness means big money.

Money was at the center of my investigation published this week that reexamined the FBI’s high-profile investigation into corruption in college basketball. As it turns out, the investigation had a misconduct scandal of its own.

Five and a half years ago, federal authorities released the long-running investigation of college basketball that resulted in the arrest of 10 men, including assistant coaches at USC, Arizona, Auburn and Oklahoma State, on charges including conspiracy to commit bribery and wire fraud. . .

“For the 10 men charged, the college basketball craze went well beyond the Grand Ball in March,” Joon Kim, then-acting U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said at a Sept. 26 press conference. 2017.

William Sweeney, then the deputy director in charge of the FBI’s New York office, followed with a sinister comment that became the catchphrase of the investigation. He warned would-be wrongdoers that “we have their playbook.”

I wrote about that press conference when it happened. It’s hard to overstate the shock waves the investigation sent through the sport. Wiretaps and undercover FBI agents had replaced hassles and full-court pressures. One headline described it as “Armageddon.” College basketball seemed certain to flip.

But the hype didn’t match the reality, like so much else in the investigation codenamed by the researchers was Ballerz.

Over the past few years, I have collected thousands of pages of case records, including court testimony, text messages, intercepted phone calls, emails, internal FBI performance reviews, and other documents. Those helped me do an extensive reassessment of the investigation.

The records tell a compelling story, with some details that have not surfaced until now. The alleged wrongdoing that seemed so damning when presented by authorities during the press conference turned out to be much murkier. The races were ruined. Five men were sent to a federal prison. And lurking in the shadows for all these years, recorded in sealed court files or vague mentions during hearings and on the news, was the misconduct of the lead FBI agent on the case.

The saga involves race (all four coaches charged are black) and questions about NCAA rules that until recent years barred athletes from profiting from their name, image and likeness; what crimes are worth the federal government leveraging its vast resources to combat; and how federal authorities treat one of their own when they end up on the wrong side of the law.

You can read the story here: “How an FBI agent’s wild Las Vegas weekend marred an investigation into NCAA basketball corruption.”

And now, this is what is happening in california, from Ryan Fonseca:

Note: Some of the sites we link to may limit the number of stories you can access without subscribing.

THE STORIES

A new Korean-American history museum was supposed to open last year. But construction on the first center of its kind has yet to begin in Koreatown. LAist

The Oscar-nominated film “Stand and Deliver,” set in East Los Angeles and based on a true story, turned 35 this year. LA Taco has a rich history of film production photography at East LA and Boyle Heights schools, and what campuses look like today. the taco

POLITIC AND GOVERNMENT

San Francisco and Los Angeles are losing residents, but some California suburbs are booming. This is what the data shows. Los Angeles Times

Approximately 25% of Californians either lack traditional bank accounts or pay large fees to payday lenders or check cashing services. The state is exploring how to create a free public banking system to help disadvantaged consumers. CalMatters

CRIME, COURTS AND POLICE

A black California couple has settled a lawsuit with a home appraisal company over claims of racial discrimination. The Marin City home of Tenisha Tate-Austin and Paul Austin was originally estimated by an appraiser to be worth $995,000. But when the couple removed family photos and African-themed art and had a white friend pose as the owner, another appraiser put the home’s value at $1,482,500. Los Angeles Times

During the height of the pandemic, Santa Clara County officials tracked mobile phone data to map parishioners in an effort to prove a church was violating public health orders. That’s according to court documents. first reported by journalist David Zweig. The “geofencing” and other surveillance measures the county used are surprising civil rights experts. the mercury news

HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENT

Approximately 30 million gallons of partially treated wastewater spills to the Pacific each day from an international treatment plant in San Diego – and a solution is not expected in the short term. The plant has been overwhelmed by sewage diverted from Tijuana after a major pipeline ruptured in August. San Diego Union Tribune

A Los Angeles woman is on a mission to destigmatize Latino mental health. Through her brand Educated Chola, Rosa Valdes uses humor in her line of t-shirts, stickers, mugs, and jewelry to encourage others in the Latino community to speak up about anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues. Los Angeles Times

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

A San Fernando laundromat played herself in the multi-Oscar nominated film “Everything Everywhere All at Once.” Fans of the beloved universe-spanning family film flock to the Valley Mall, which is home to Majers Coin Laundry. The laundromat owners reflect on how the film reflects aspects of their own lives. Los Angeles Times

The road trip is practically a California institution. If you’re looking for a change of scenery over spring break, here are 11 trips/destinations (depending on your perspective) to explore. Los Angeles Times

AND FINALLY

from today california landmark comes from Jan Rasmussen from Lakewood: Queen Califia’s Magic Circle in Hidden.

The intricate sculptures at Queen Califia’s Magic Circle in Escondido in January 2017.

(Jan Rasmussen)

January writes:

What are California’s essential landmarks? Fill out this form to send us your photos of a special place in California — natural or man-made. Tell us why it’s interesting and what makes it a symbol of life in the Golden State. Be sure to only include photos taken directly by you. Your presentation may appear in a future issue of the newsletter.

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