By JOE VARDON
BLADE SPORTS WRITER
The federal document charging former University of Toledo men’s basketball player Sammy Villegas with point-shaving fails to mention the other former Rockets athlete charged last year with a similar crime.
But the FBI says the June charges filed against Mr. Villegas in U.S. District Court in Detroit are related to the charges filed last year (and later dropped) against former UT football player Harvey "Scooter" McDougle Jr. in the same court – an indication that neither of the university’s sports programs are clear of a dark cloud that has hung over them for more than 16 months.
"The charges against Mr. Villegas are part of a larger investigation that encompasses Mr. McDougle, and that investigation is ongoing," said Sandra Berchtold, an FBI spokesman in Detroit.
Mr. Villegas, 25, is accused of taking bribes to shave points during games in the 2004-05 and 2005-06 basketball seasons – his junior and senior years at UT. The charges against him were made public last week.
Mr. McDougle was charged March 29, 2007, with betting on a UT football game and recruiting other Rockets athletes – both football and basketball players – to shave points. Those charges were dropped April 18, 2007, but attorneys on both sides at the time said the investigation was still ongoing.
Months later, Mr. McDougle’s father said federal prosecutors told Mr. McDougle’s attorney that he would not have any further charges against him. And this week, that attorney, James Burdick, said he’s been given no indication that Mr. McDougle was connected with the charges filed against Mr. Villegas.
"I have not heard from anyone, the district attorney or the FBI, that there was anything new of relevance against my client," Mr. Burdick said. "Nobody like that has indicated they suspect Scooter is connected to [the charges against Mr. Villegas]."
Though Mr. McDougle is not mentioned in document filed by the U.S. attorney in Detroit against Mr. Villegas, a comparison of the written charges against the two former Rockets may illustrate the connection between the cases.
In the FBI’s complaint against Mr. McDougle, a federal agent said a Detroit gambler now known as Gary Manni was heard on a wire tap of his phone in November, 2005, telling a UT basketball player that Mr. McDougle had "taken care of certain players on the [basketball] team who would be helping ‘Gary’ to influence a game that day."
According to the U.S. attorney, Mr. Villegas "met with a conspirator" known to authorities on or about Nov. 30, 2005, in Toledo. The Rockets played Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne that night at home and won 85-65.
Mr. Burdick said that if Mr. Manni did indeed say such things to a UT basketball player about Mr. McDougle, it was untrue.
"My client didn’t do anything like that," Mr. Burdick said. "People, especially gamblers, try to enhance their reputations to others all the time by saying ‘I’ve got this guy in the bag,’ ‘I’ve got that guy in the bag.’ "
While the only incidence of actual point-shaving mentioned in the charges against Mr. Villegas was on Feb. 4, 2006, when he allegedly missed two free throws on purpose against Central Michigan, the document also says Mr. Villegas was involved in a scheme to "fix" games for two seasons.
Mr. Villegas’ attorney, John Belanger, has not returned repeated phone messages. Mr. Belanger’s answering machine in Sterling Heights, Mich., said he would be out of the office until Friday.
One major difference between the cases involving Mr. McDougle and Mr. Villegas is what has happened in court. While the charges were dropped against Mr. McDougle, Mr. Villegas waived an indictment and has a sentencing date scheduled for Nov. 18
Mr. Villegas is also accused of paying another unnamed player to shave points. That player has not yet been charged.
A wide-ranging internal investigation into UT athletics was completed last summer in which university President Dr. Lloyd Jacobs announced that the point-shaving charges against Mr. McDougle was an isolated incident and was "not a product of the ethos of this department."
Though fresh point-shaving charges have arisen and more could be on the way, UT spokesman Larry Burns said there were no plans for further internal investigations.
"We are still very confident that the ethos, the culture of our athletic department is outstanding," Mr. Burns said. "If these accusations are true, we believe they are very isolated incidents and very poor decisions by one or very few people."
BLADE SPORTS WRITER
The federal document charging former University of Toledo men’s basketball player Sammy Villegas with point-shaving fails to mention the other former Rockets athlete charged last year with a similar crime.
But the FBI says the June charges filed against Mr. Villegas in U.S. District Court in Detroit are related to the charges filed last year (and later dropped) against former UT football player Harvey "Scooter" McDougle Jr. in the same court – an indication that neither of the university’s sports programs are clear of a dark cloud that has hung over them for more than 16 months.
"The charges against Mr. Villegas are part of a larger investigation that encompasses Mr. McDougle, and that investigation is ongoing," said Sandra Berchtold, an FBI spokesman in Detroit.
Mr. Villegas, 25, is accused of taking bribes to shave points during games in the 2004-05 and 2005-06 basketball seasons – his junior and senior years at UT. The charges against him were made public last week.
Mr. McDougle was charged March 29, 2007, with betting on a UT football game and recruiting other Rockets athletes – both football and basketball players – to shave points. Those charges were dropped April 18, 2007, but attorneys on both sides at the time said the investigation was still ongoing.
Months later, Mr. McDougle’s father said federal prosecutors told Mr. McDougle’s attorney that he would not have any further charges against him. And this week, that attorney, James Burdick, said he’s been given no indication that Mr. McDougle was connected with the charges filed against Mr. Villegas.
"I have not heard from anyone, the district attorney or the FBI, that there was anything new of relevance against my client," Mr. Burdick said. "Nobody like that has indicated they suspect Scooter is connected to [the charges against Mr. Villegas]."
Though Mr. McDougle is not mentioned in document filed by the U.S. attorney in Detroit against Mr. Villegas, a comparison of the written charges against the two former Rockets may illustrate the connection between the cases.
In the FBI’s complaint against Mr. McDougle, a federal agent said a Detroit gambler now known as Gary Manni was heard on a wire tap of his phone in November, 2005, telling a UT basketball player that Mr. McDougle had "taken care of certain players on the [basketball] team who would be helping ‘Gary’ to influence a game that day."
According to the U.S. attorney, Mr. Villegas "met with a conspirator" known to authorities on or about Nov. 30, 2005, in Toledo. The Rockets played Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne that night at home and won 85-65.
Mr. Burdick said that if Mr. Manni did indeed say such things to a UT basketball player about Mr. McDougle, it was untrue.
"My client didn’t do anything like that," Mr. Burdick said. "People, especially gamblers, try to enhance their reputations to others all the time by saying ‘I’ve got this guy in the bag,’ ‘I’ve got that guy in the bag.’ "
While the only incidence of actual point-shaving mentioned in the charges against Mr. Villegas was on Feb. 4, 2006, when he allegedly missed two free throws on purpose against Central Michigan, the document also says Mr. Villegas was involved in a scheme to "fix" games for two seasons.
Mr. Villegas’ attorney, John Belanger, has not returned repeated phone messages. Mr. Belanger’s answering machine in Sterling Heights, Mich., said he would be out of the office until Friday.
One major difference between the cases involving Mr. McDougle and Mr. Villegas is what has happened in court. While the charges were dropped against Mr. McDougle, Mr. Villegas waived an indictment and has a sentencing date scheduled for Nov. 18
Mr. Villegas is also accused of paying another unnamed player to shave points. That player has not yet been charged.
A wide-ranging internal investigation into UT athletics was completed last summer in which university President Dr. Lloyd Jacobs announced that the point-shaving charges against Mr. McDougle was an isolated incident and was "not a product of the ethos of this department."
Though fresh point-shaving charges have arisen and more could be on the way, UT spokesman Larry Burns said there were no plans for further internal investigations.
"We are still very confident that the ethos, the culture of our athletic department is outstanding," Mr. Burns said. "If these accusations are true, we believe they are very isolated incidents and very poor decisions by one or very few people."
