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Two men from Georgia are among 31 people charged in what federal prosecutors call a sprawling, high-tech illegal gambling operation that stretched across the country and pulled in members of the mafia, former professional athletes, and high-profile names from the NBA.
A seven-count indictment unsealed Thursday in Brooklyn outlines a detailed scheme in which players allegedly used rigged shuffling machines, marked cards, and hidden technology to fix underground poker games in New York City, the Hamptons, and other cities across the U.S. The goal, according to prosecutors, was simple: cheat unsuspecting players out of millions of dollars and funnel the money to La Cosa Nostra’s Bonanno, Gambino, and Genovese crime families.
Federal agents arrested all 31 defendants in coordinated raids across 11 states early Thursday. The list includes Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, former NBA player Damon Jones, and several reputed organized crime figures.
Georgia Defendants Among Key Players
Two men from Georgia were among those named in the indictment, according to the United States Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York:
Tony “Black Tony” Goodson, 52, of Forsyth, is accused of helping supply the technology used to rig poker games. Prosecutors say Goodson was part of the team that designed or distributed altered shuffling machines capable of reading every card in the deck and transmitting that data to conspirators during play.
John “John South” Mazzola, 43, of Gray, allegedly played in the rigged games and took part in a gunpoint robbery to steal one of the devices when tensions flared within the group.
Goodson and Mazzola, along with Kenny Han from Queens, New York, made their first appearance before a judge in Macon on Thursday afternoon, according to The Macon Telegraph.
Han’s ties to Georgia are unclear. According to the indictment, he was also a member of the cheating teams.
“Face Cards” and the Role of Former NBA Players
Federal prosecutors say the group relied on well-known athletes to draw victims to the tables. Billups and Jones, acting as “Face Cards,” lent the operation credibility, enticing wealthy players to join high-stakes games that appeared legitimate but were secretly manipulated.
“These cheaters used sophisticated technology to ensure victims would lose big,” said U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr. “Today’s indictment and arrests sound the final buzzer for these fraudsters.”
How the Scheme Worked
According to the indictment, the group’s illegal poker empire ran like a coordinated team:
Game organizers set up underground poker events — often in luxury settings in Manhattan, East Hampton, and other major cities — and invited unsuspecting high rollers to join.
Suppliers, including Goodson and others, allegedly provided rigged shuffling machines capable of reading cards and transmitting the order of play through hidden systems.
A “Quarterback” stationed at the table would receive the data — often through a cellphone connection — from an off-site accomplice who knew which player had the winning hand.
The Quarterback then sent subtle signals, such as tapping poker chips or adjusting objects on the table, to alert teammates playing in on the scheme.
The “cheating team” used this information to place strategic bets, ensuring that targeted victims lost tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars per game.
Authorities say additional gadgets, including x-ray poker tables, chip tray cameras, and special contact lenses for reading marked cards, were also part of the operation.
Mafia Involvement and Violence
The Bonanno, Gambino, and Genovese crime families allegedly financed and profited from the games, taking a percentage of proceeds from both “straight” (non-rigged) games and the fixed versions.
Prosecutors say when players refused to pay up, the operation turned violent.
In one instance, defendants beat and threatened a victim to recover gambling debts. In another, members of the group allegedly robbed a co-conspirator at gunpoint to seize a cheating device.
The indictment also accuses several defendants of extortion and money laundering through shell companies and cryptocurrency accounts.
A Hollywood Movie — But Real
“With the alleged involvement of three La Cosa Nostra crime families, an NBA head coach and Hall of Famer, as well as other current and former professional athletes, the investigative work that culminated with this morning’s operation are reminiscent of a Hollywood movie. But this was not luck, and it was not theatrics,” stated HSI New York Special Agent in Charge Patel.
Authorities say the elaborate operation continued for years before it was uncovered through a joint investigation by the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, the NYPD, and the New York Waterfront Commission.
Decades in Prison
The defendants face charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, illegal gambling, extortion, robbery, and money laundering. If convicted, several could face decades in federal prison.
Officials are urging anyone who believes they may have been victimized in one of the rigged poker games to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI.
All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
