JPMorganChase Announces $24 Million To Help Strengthen Shipbuilding In Philadelphia And America’s Defense Industrial Base

Philly Daily, where my On Crime column appears each week, reports that JPMorganChase announced they are spending $24 million to strengthen Philadelphia’s shipbuilding and maritime manufacturing industry—supporting skills training, stronger supply chains and small business growth in a sector critical to America’s defense industrial base.

The announcement includes $18 million in loans and investments and $6 million in philanthropic grants. Near-term focus areas include:

• Driving the expansion of a submarine manufacturing and assembly facility expected to create 450 new permanent jobs;
• Helping expand workforce training and apprenticeship opportunities for potentially thousands of local workers—including welders, electricians and other critical shipbuilding roles—to work at the Navy Yard;
• Supporting up to 100 local maritime small business suppliers; and
• Building a stronger regional collaborative that connects employers, training providers and community partners to meet demand and expand economic opportunity.

“America can compete and lead in shipbuilding again—it starts with more skilled workers and secure supply chains,” said Jamie Dimon, Chairman and CEO of JPMorganChase. “We need to train people for the jobs shipbuilders urgently need, connect them to good careers and strengthen the suppliers and partners that keep a shipyard running. When we build the workforce and the supply chain together, we create good careers for workers and a stronger, more resilient maritime industry that supports our national security and our economy.”

You can read the rest of the piece via the link below:

JPMorganChase announces $24 million to help strengthen shipbuilding in Philadelphia and America’s defense industrial base – Philly Daily 

On This Day In History The Late, Great American Ernest Hemingway Was Born

As History.com notes, the late, great American writer Ernest Hemingway was born on this day. 

On this day in 1899, Ernest Miller Hemingway, author of such novels as “For Whom the Bell Tolls” and “The Old Man and the Sea,” is born in Oak Park, Illinois. The influential American literary icon became known for his straightforward prose and use of understatement. Hemingway, who tackled topics such as bullfighting and war in his work, also became famous for his own macho, hard-drinking persona. 

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link: 

http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/ernest-hemingway-is-born?cmpid=email-hist-tdih-2017-0721-07212017&om_rid=de5e4076c942a595dbda53f758321d197499484f6d117f61b6ac5c08e0d6f0aa&om_mid=215102284&kx_EmailCampaignID=13846&kx_EmailCampaignName=email-hist-tdih-2017-0721-07212017&kx_EmailRecipientID=de5e4076c942a595dbda53f758321d197499484f6d117f61b6ac5c08e0d6f0aa  

You can also read my Philadelphia Inquirer review of Hemingway’s Letters below:

           

My South Philly Review Crime Beat Column On Elder Abuse

The South Philly Review published my Crime Beat column on elder abuse today.

You can read the column above, via the link below, or the following text:

Home - PA Times Media

This past June 15^th was designated World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, but awareness of elder abuse should be an everyday concern.

Over my years of covering the crime beat, I’ve met victims of elderly scams. Some are embarrassed and reluctant to discuss their being victimized. They don’t want to appear mentally feeble, especially in from of their grown children. But those who were willing to talk about being cheated were assured by detectives that scam artists were very good at fooling anyone, not just the elderly.        

Some seniors have been cheated out their life savings and others have had their identities stolen, which resulted in placing them in heavy debt. Adding to the financial loss, the scams also caused great physical stress, which endangered their health and wellbeing.

And, sadly, not all scammers are strangers on the phone. I recall attending a preliminary hearing at the 3^rd Police District some years ago. An elderly man’s adult daughter and her husband stood accused of stealing the elderly man’s Social Security checks over a period of years. The father stood with his head down as if ashamed or saddened. And I’ve been told of cases in which an elderly mother or father was beaten routinely by their grown children.               

Last month, the FBI Philadelphia Field Office announced that June 15th was World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, a time to underscore the importance of protecting older adults from financial abuse, neglect, and exploitation.

“The FBI in Philadelphia is raising awareness to tactics most commonly used by scammers and red flags to look out for to avoid becoming a victim,” the FBI stated. “The abuse of older Americans can come in various forms, including physical, emotional, mental, or financial exploitation.”

According to the 2025 Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) Elder Fraud Report, the FBI received over 200,000 complaints from victims over the age of 60, totaling approximately $7.7 billion in losses.

The FBI pointed out that last year alone, Pennsylvania residents reported over 30,000 complaints to the FBI with estimated fraud losses of more than $537 million. In New Jersey, more than 20,000 complaints were received by the FBI totaling $660 million in losses. Phishing/spoofing, tech/customer support calls, and investment scams continue to dominate the Philadelphia threat landscape and drive victim losses into the billions.

“World Elder Abuse Awareness Day serves as an important reminder of the harm fraud and exploitation can cause to older Americans,” said Wayne A. Jacobs, the special agent in charge of FBI Philadelphia. “Scammers often create a false sense of urgency to steal personal information, money, or both. We encourage seniors and their loved ones to remain vigilant, verify unfamiliar requests, and report suspicious activity. Through education, outreach, and enforcement, FBI Philadelphia is committed to protecting our communities and the savings older Americans have worked a lifetime to build.”

The FBI passed on some ways to protect yourself and loved ones include:

• Recognize scam attempts and end all communication with the perpetrator. This includes the very simple step to hang up the phone!
• Resist the pressure to act quickly. Scammers thrive off of a sense of urgency to incite fear and lure victims into immediate action.
• Be cautious of unsolicited phone calls, mailings, and door-to-door service offers.
• Never give or send any personal information, money, jewelry, gift cards, checks, or wire information to unverified people or businesses.
• Be careful of what you download. Never open an email attachment from someone you don’t know and be wary of email attachments forwarded to you.
• Make sure all computer anti-virus and security software and malware protections are up to date. Use reputable anti-virus software and firewalls.

The FBI in Philadelphia stated that they have victim specialists dedicated to ensuring victims have the resources and support they need while navigating the criminal justice process.

If you or someone you know may have been a victim of elder fraud, contact FBI Philadelphia at (215) 418-4000 or submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov. You can also file a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center at ic3.gov.

Paul Davis’s Crime Beat column appears here each week. He can be reached via pauldavisoncrime.com. 

Library of America's Story Of The Week: Ernest Hemigway's 'The End Of Something'

The Library of America’s selection of the week is Ernest Hemingway’s short story The End of Something. 

You can read about the background of the late, great American writer's story and the story itself via the link below:         

The Sun Also Rises & Other Writings 1918–1926 - Library of America 

You can also read my Washington Times column on Hemingway via the link below:                             

Paul Davis On Crime: Two Of The Best Crime Short Stories Ever Written: My Washington Times On Crime Column On A Fine Collection of Hemingway’s Novels. Short Stories and Letters 

My Philly Daily On Crime Column: Former Department Of Defense Employee Pleads Guilty To Laundering Millions Of Dollars For Overseas Scammers

 Philly Daily ran my On Crime column today. 

You can read the column via the link below or the following text:

Paul Davis: Former Department of Defense employee pleads guilty to laundering millions of dollars for overseas scammers – Philly Daily  

Many workers with the Defense Department, now called the War Department, as well as other federal agencies, legally moonlight in other jobs to supplement their income.

Prior to my retirement from the Defense Department in late 2007, I served as the civilian administrative officer for a DOD command that oversaw defense contractors in the tri-state area for the military’s major procurement commands. The contractors, ranging from mom & pop firms to major corporations, provided the Defense Department with such diverse items as cruise missiles, combat boots, special operations parachutes and orange juice, to name but a few.

Our offices were located for many years at the Defense Personnel Support Center in South Philadelphia, known locally as the “Quartermaster,” until we moved to the naval base on Tabor Road in Northeast Philadelphia in 1999.

One of my many security tasks was briefing our military and civilian employees on the “dos and don’ts” of outside employment, especially if they possessed a security clearance.

One situation that never came up in my time was a Defense Department employee working a second job as a money mule for Nigerian fraudsters.

Which is exactly the case of Samual D. Marcus, a former Defense Department employee who worked a few buildings down from my building at the naval base, albeit long after I retired.

Marcus was a logistics specialist for DLA Troop Support, a major subordinate command of the Defense Logistics Agency. The DLA Troop Support command is responsible for four supply chains which provide the nation’s military and government partners with: food and feeding equipment; clothing and textile items; construction and equipment materiel ranging from lightbulbs to bulldozers; and medical materiel and pharmaceuticals.

DLA Troop Support provides more than $25B in support to 77k global customers through a network of 2.7k suppliers, delivering optimal, global supply chain solutions with a focus on world-class performance and strong partnerships in support of national defense, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

Marcus is no longer a DLA employee.  

United States Attorney David Metcalf announced on July 7^th that Samuel D. Marcus, 33, of Oreland, Pennsylvania, entered a plea of guilty before United States District Judge Joel H. Slomsky to one count of concealment money laundering.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Marcus was charged by indictment in February, arising from his role as a money mule for a group of Nigeria-based scammers, in which he received, concealed, and laundered millions of dollars in fraud proceeds.

As detailed in court filings and admitted to by the defendant, after falling victim to a romance fraud scheme in late 2022 and early 2023, Marcus then knowingly served as a money mule for the same group of fraudsters that initially victimized him. 

“From approximately July 2023 to December 2025, while employed as a Logistics Specialist with the U.S. Department of Defense, Marcus was in direct and regular contact with this group of Nigeria-based fraudsters, who operated under the aliases “Rachel Jude” and “Ned McMurray,” among others. These fraudsters engaged in a variety of wire fraud schemes that targeted victims based in the United States, including romance fraud, cyber fraud, tax fraud, financing fraud, and business email compromise schemes, to which victims lost millions of dollars,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office stated.

“The fraudsters employed a network of money mules in the United States to help launder the fraud proceeds and instructed victims to transfer funds to financial accounts opened and operated by various money mules, including Marcus.

“At the direction of fraudsters, Marcus and other money mules conducted a series of rapid financial transactions to convert fraud victim funds deposited into their accounts into cryptocurrency and to move those funds into foreign accounts. Marcus personally deposited and transferred millions of dollars of fraudulently obtained money into and through his personal and business accounts, while fully aware that “Rachel Jude” and “Ned McMurray” were scammers who carried out sophisticated fraud schemes. Marcus also affirmatively misled and lied to his financial institutions and law enforcement officers about the laundered funds, to include sending fraudulent invoices to make the transactions appear legitimate. In fact, Marcus continued to work as a money mule for the fraudsters after being informed by FBI agents that the money passing through his accounts had been stolen from other people and that his monetary transfers were consistent with money laundering.”

Marcus is scheduled to be sentenced on October 16 and faces a maximum possible term of 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine.

This case was investigated by FBI Philadelphia’s Fort Washington Resident Agency, with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations and the Department of Defense Office of Inspector General’s Defense Criminal Investigative Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Samuel S. Dalke.

Paul Davis’s On Crime column appears here each week. He is also a contributor to Broad + Liberty and Counterterrorism magazine. He can be reached via pauldavisoncrime.com.

My South Philly Review Crime Beat Column: Billy Schmidt's Suspected Murderers Arrested

The South Philly Review ran my Crime Beat column today regarding the suspected murderers of Billy Schidmt being arrested.

You can read the column via the page above (and click on the page to enlarge) or you can read the text below: 

On July 6^th, the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office (DAO) issued a statement regarding the arrests of Kaiseem Smith and Azzubair Outen-Fleming, the two suspected murderers of a 22-year-old Penn State student in South Philadelphia.

“On Thursday, a Philadelphia Police Officer assigned to the DAO’s Gun Violence Task Force coordinated the safe surrender of Defendant Kaiseem Smith (DOB 12/27/2009) for his alleged role in the robbery and homicide of William (Billy) J. Schmidt,” the statement read.

“The surrender as well as the apprehension of a fugitive co-defendant in Colorado Springs occurred within a day of the DAO’s press conference seeking public help in apprehending both defendants. The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office will seek justice for the family of William (Billy) J. Schmidt and all others involved.”

The DAO also stated that the investigation remains active and ongoing.

Smith and Outen-Fleming are suspected of murdering Billy Schmidt after robbing him of his cell phone. The murder has outraged South Philadelphia residents and beyond due to the senseless violence that took the life of a promising and popular young man in a relatively safe neighborhood in South Philly. A well-attended vigil was held where Billy Schmidt lived and died, and Facebook and other social media have been inundated with critical comments about street crime and injustice.   

In a news conference prior to the arrests of the suspects, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner said Smith and Outen-Fleming, both 16, are expected to be charged with murder, gun offenses and other charges, and they will probably be tried as adults.

Krasner also noted that another man, Donte Abdulmalik, 35, is Outen-Fleming's stepfather, and he is in custody and charged with hindering apprehension, obstruction of justice and tampering with evidence in connection with this case. Abdulmalik helped Outen-Fleming leave the area, according to the DA's office He was also wanted for violating either parole or probation, Krasner added.

Krasner also stated that the investigation so far indicates that Smith was the shooter.                        

According to the District Attorney’s Office, on Saturday, June 6, 2026, after 1 a.m., Philadelphia Police Officers responded to a call to the 1900 block of Durfor Street regarding a person with a gun. When the officers arrived at the scene, they located victim Billy Schmidt with a fatal gunshot wound to the chest. Schmidt was transferred to Penn-Presbyterian Medical Center where he was pronounced.

“During the course of the investigation, video surveillance footage from numerous sources depicted Defendants Kaiseem Smith and Azzubair Outen-Fleming driving in South Philadelphia around Porter and 21st street before parking around 1 a.m. The defendants are seen leaving the vehicle and walking towards Jackson Street. Around 1:30 a.m., surveillance footage shows Schmidt walking on the sidewalk on 20th Street and standing on the corner. The defendants walk towards Schmidt before Azzubair Outen-Fleming appears to grab Schmidt’s phone and then punches him. Outen-Fleming then proceeds to go through Schmidt’s pockets. Both suspects appear to force Schmidt onto the sidewalk and knock him onto the ground. As both defendants walk away, Kaiseem Smith is observed with a gun is his hand.”

The DAO stated that video surveillance shows Schmidt walking behind the defendants. Azzubair Outen-Fleming is observed throwing Schmidt’s phone down the block, then runs in that direction. Shortly after, surveillance footage shows Kaiseem Smith rounding the corner of 20th and Durfor Street. Schmidt is seen running behind Smith when Smith reaches into his back pocket, pulls out a gun and fires a fatal shot into Schmidt’s chest. Footage shows the defendants walking away from the scene before entering an SUV and driving east on Porter Street.

Investigators identified Kaiseem Smith and Azzubair Outen-Fleming as suspects in the homicide and determined that Donte Abdulmalik assisted in the transportation of Azzubair Outen-Fleming out of the jurisdiction.

“Our office has been collaborating closely with the Philadelphia Police Department on the investigation since this murder took place,” said District Attorney Krasner. 

The violence that took Billy Schmidt’s life cannot be undone, but perhaps justice for his murder will be done.

Paul Davis’s Crime Beat column appears here weekly. He can be reached via pauldavisoncrime.com. 

Philadelphia Chinese Lantern Festival

Philly Daily, where my On Crime column appears each week, reports that the Philadelphia Chinese Lantern Festival appears in Franklin Square for its 10th year, illuminating the city with over 1,100 new lantern creations and a summer of cultural celebration. The event runs until August 16^th. 

“The festival will run nightly at Franklin Square Park, 6th & Race Streets, Philadelphia. It is presented by Tianyu Arts & Culture and sponsored by local partners, with proceeds benefiting Historic Philadelphia, Inc. to support free events at Franklin Square,” the event planners announced.

 

You can read the rest of the piece via the link below:

 Philadelphia Chinese Lantern Festival 2026 – Philly Daily

Rise And Fall Of ‘The Westies,’ New York’s Last Irish gang, As New TV Series Charts Their Murders And Shakedowns

I watched the first episode of The Westies on MGM +.  

The TV series is a fictional retelling of the Irish American New York City street gang. Although I would have preferred to watch a series closer to the true history (which is dramatic enough, I would think) the series was interesting and I liked two of the lead actors, J.K. Simmons and Titus Welliver. 

Michael Kaplan at the New York Post offers a piece on the new series. 

Thousands of families visit the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center every year for events like the Westminster dog show, Comic Con and International Auto Show.

Very few of them realize the blood spilled, extortion extracted and dead bodies connected with the exhibition space, as it rose from the ashes of former rail-yards to host such jazzy gatherings.

These days, the Javits Center is the spot for glitzy conventions and gatherings.  

During construction between 1979 through 1986 and in the early years of operation, the burgeoning Center on the very West end of 34^th Street was a cash cow for New York’s criminal elite.

It also limned the rise and fall of a violent Hell’s Kitchen-based Irish gang, the Westies. Those gangsters and the Javits Center play key roles in a new scripted crime series,

“The Westies felt like they owned the neighborhood where the Javits Center was,” series co-creator Chris Brancato, who specializes in historically inspired crime dramas, told The Post. 

“Cops were on the pad [payroll] and the Westies felt a sense of freedom to do what they wanted, whether it was legal or not,” such as bookmaking, loan sharking, drug dealing and contract killings. 

Underhand opportunities abounded at the New York City signature construction project of the ‘80s, which required the use of workers from a wide swath of unions, who already had mobsters rifling their coffers. "Everyone understood  that the Javits Center was going to be an unprecedented bounty of criminal rackets," T. J. English, author of the definitive book on the gang, "The Westies" (not part of the series, which is more a "historical fiction," according to Brancato) told the Post. 

You can read the rest of the piece via the link below: 

Rise and fall of 'The Westies,' New York's last Irish gang, as new series charts their murders and shakedowns

'Jurassic Park’ Star Sam Neill Dead At 78 After Cancer Recovery

The New York Post reports that actor Sam Neill has died.

Sam Neill, the star of the 1993 blockbuster “Jurassic Park,” died at 78 on Monday, his family announced. 

“It is with immense sadness that the whānau [family] of Sam Neill share the news of his passing on Monday 13th July, in Sydney Australia,” the late actor’s loved ones wrote via Instagram. 

“Sam was surrounded by family and passed with the dignity that has characterized his whole life,” the statement continued. “The loss was sudden and unexpected but blessed by the fact that Sam remained cancer free.”

You can read the rest of the piece via the link below:

'Jurassic Park' star Sam Neill dead at 78

Although Neill was best known for Jurassic Park, his best role, in my view, was as Sidney Reilly, a real-life spy, in the PBS series Reilly: Ace of Spies. 

I plan to rewatch the series. 

‘Reilly: Ace of Spies’- A Review | HistoryAccess.com

Reilly Ace of Spies | PBS 

1963 James Bond Classic Film 'From Russia With Love' Ranked Among The Franchise’s Best — And It Holds A Near-Perfect Rotten Tomatoes Score

I loved Dr. No when I saw the film as a pr-teen in the early 1960s, but I truly became an Ian Fleming (seen in the photo below) aficionado when I read all of Ian Fleming's James Bond novels after seeing the film From Russia With Love. 

In my view, From Russia With Love is the best Bond novel as well as the best Bond film. And Sean Connery remains the best James Bond.

Director Terence Young was mostly faithful to Ian Fleming's novel, save from changing the villains from the Soviets to the international criminal organization SPECTRE, which Ian Fleming created in a later novel, Thunderball. (The plot made more sense with the Soviets as the bad guys).

In addition to Sean Connery as Bond, Terence Young casts some fine actors to portray Ian Fleming's great characters. The inspired casting included Robert Shaw, who was truly menacing as Grant the assassin, as well as Pedro Armendariz, who portrayed Darko Kerim, the British head of Section T. (In the film Kerim is call “Kerim Bey.” Bey is an honorarium, like the Japanese “San”). 

Also outstanding were the villains Lotte Lenya as Rosa Klebb and Vladek Sheybal as Kronsten.   

The film has so many iconic scenes from the girl fight at the gypsy camp to the shooting of Krilencu as he tried to escape from a huge film poster. And I believe the fight aboard the train with Bond and Grant is the best fight scene on film. 

I love the film and I’ve seen it many times over the years. To me, it is the greatest Bond film.

Apparently, many others agree.    

Rachel Schieider at Men’s Journal offers her take on the great film thriller.             

James Bond introduced himself to audiences in Dr. No, but it was his second outing that convinced many moviegoers the franchise was here to stay.

Released in 1963, From Russia with Love remains one of the most acclaimed entries in the 007 series.

 

More than 60 years later, it still boasts one of the highest Rotten Tomatoes scores of any James Bond movie ever made.

 

Starring Sean Connery in his second appearance as the legendary British spy, From Russia with Love sends Bond to Istanbul to retrieve a Soviet decoding device before it falls into the wrong hands. 

Along the way, he finds himself caught in an elaborate trap orchestrated by the criminal organization SPECTRE, leading to one of the franchise’s most suspenseful adventures. 

Unlike many later Bond films that leaned heavily into gadgets and over-the-top spectacle, From Russia with Love is often praised for its grounded espionage story and Cold War atmosphere.

You can read the rest of the piece via the link below:

1963 James Bond Classic Ranked Among the Franchise's Best — And It Holds a Near-Perfect Rotten Tomatoes Score - Men's Journal

  

Former National Basketball Association Players, Current Player Agent, And Three Other Individuals Charged in Sports Bribery, Illegal Betting And Money Laundering Conspiracies

 On June 29^th the U.S. Attorney's Office Eastern District of New York released the information below:

Earlier today, in federal court in Brooklyn, an indictment was unsealed charging six defendants — former National Basketball Association (NBA) players Malik Beasley and Edward Davis, and co-conspirators William Brown, Robert Gorodetsky, Ernesto Plascencia, and current NBA player agent Paolo Zamorano—with wire fraud conspiracy, bribery in sporting contests, honest services wire fraud conspiracy, and money laundering conspiracy for their alleged roles in a scheme to bribe Beasley to manipulate his performance in NBA games and use inside information about Beasley’s intended performance to profit via illegal betting activity.  Several of the defendants were arrested today at locations across the country and will be arraigned in the Eastern District of New York at a later date.

Joseph Nocella Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and James C. Barnacle, Jr., Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field Office (FBI), announced the arrests and indictment.

“As alleged, the defendants turned professional basketball into a criminal betting operation, bribing then-NBA player Malik Beasley to fix his performance in multiple games in order to place fraudulent wagers, enrich themselves and cheat legitimate sportsbooks,” stated United States Attorney Nocella.  “Bribery and insider betting schemes like this one involving former NBA players and a current NBA player agent who exploited inside NBA information for profit erode the integrity of American sports and victimize the sports-watching public.  Our Office will continue in its strong tradition of holding accountable anyone who seeks to corrupt sports through illegal means.”  

Mr. Nocella thanked the FBI Field Offices in Charlotte, North Carolina; Los Angeles, California; Omaha, Nebraska; Chicago, Illinois; and Las Vegas, Nevada, for their valuable assistance.

“These defendants allegedly operated an illegal betting ring in an attempt to unlawfully earn hundreds of thousands of dollars. As alleged, Malik Beasley allowed himself to be bought and altered his gametime performance to line pockets of Ed Davis and his other co-conspirators. The FBI continues to dismantle fraudulent schemes that erode the integrity of any institution, including our nation's professional sports leagues,” stated FBI Assistant Director in Charge Barnacle.

As alleged, Beasley, then a player for the Milwaukee Bucks, agreed with his former NBA teammate Davis (known to the other co-defendants as Beasley’s “gatekeeper”) in advance of NBA games that Beasley would underperform, and at times overperform, relative to one or more of his betting statistics in those games.  Davis, Brown, Gorodetsky, Plascencia, Zamorano and other co-conspirators subsequently used this non-public information relating to Beasley’s intended performance to place fraudulent wagers conditioned on Beasley’s performance in the games at issue, all with the intention of profiting off the scheme.  As further alleged, in return for performance fixing, Beasley received bribes from the co-conspirators, typically by having Beasley’s gambling debts to Davis reduced or paid off. 

Examples of some of the influenced games are described below.

January 26, 2024 Milwaukee Bucks vs. Cleveland Cavaliers

As alleged, prior to the Bucks game against the Cleveland Cavaliers on January 26, 2024, Beasley informed Davis that he intended to underperform with respect to rebounding in the game.  Beasley provided this information to Davis to obtain a promised bribe payment and for the purpose of enabling Davis and other co-conspirators to place wagers based on this non-public information.  Davis subsequently disseminated the non-public information regarding Beasley to multiple co-conspirators, including Gorodetskty, Plascencia and Zamorano, to enable them to place fraudulent wagers. Plascencia then provided this same non-public information to Brown to enable him to place fraudulent wagers. Many of the fraudulent wagers were successful.

February 27, 2024 Milwaukee Bucks vs. Charlotte Hornets Game

As alleged, prior to the Bucks game against the Charlotte Hornets on February 27, 2024, Beasley informed Davis that Beasley intended to underperform with respect to points and overperform with respect to rebounding in the game.  Beasley provided this information to Davis to obtain a promised bribe payment and for the purpose of enabling Davis and other co-conspirators to place wagers based on this non-public information.  Davis subsequently disseminated the non-public information regarding Beasley to multiple co-conspirators, including Gorodetskty, Plascencia and Zamorano, to enable them to place fraudulent wagers.  Plascencia then provided this same non-public information to Brown to enable him to place fraudulent wagers.  Many of the fraudulent wagers were successful.

March 10, 2024 Milwaukee Bucks vs. Los Angeles Clippers

As alleged, prior to the Bucks game against the Los Angeles Clippers on March 10, 2024, Beasley informed Davis that Beasley intended to overperform with respect to rebounding in the game.  Beasley provided this information to Davis to obtain a promised bribe payment and for the purpose of enabling Davis and other co-conspirators to place wagers based on this non-public information.  Davis subsequently disseminated the non-public information regarding Beasley to multiple co-conspirators, including Gorodetskty, Plascencia and Zamorano, to enable them to place fraudulent wagers. Plascencia then provided this same non-public information to Brown to enable him to place fraudulent wagers. Many of the fraudulent wagers were successful.

In total, the defendants and their co-conspirators placed fraudulent wagers totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars conditioned on Beasley’s fixed performance in the influenced games at issue via multiple betting operators.

The charges in the indictment are allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.  If convicted, each defendant faces a maximum sentence of 20 years’ imprisonment on the wire fraud conspiracy counts, 20 years’ imprisonment on the money laundering conspiracy count and five years’ imprisonment on the bribery in sporting contests count.  

The government’s case is being handled by the Office’s Business and Securities Fraud Section.  Assistant United States Attorneys Kaitlin T. Farrell, Benjamin Weintraub and David I. Berman are in charge of the prosecution, with assistance from Paralegal Specialist Erika Ellis; former Paralegal Specialist Liam McNett previously worked on the case.

The Defendants:

MALIK BEASLEY (also known as “Beas,” “Bease,” “MB” and “5”)
Age: 29
Georgia

WILLIAM BROWN (also known as “Willo”)
Age: 39
Nebraska

EDWARD DAVIS (also known as “as “Ed,” “ED” and “E Davis”)
Age: 37
North Carolina

ROBERT GORODETSKY (also known as “Rob”)
Age: 34
Illinois

ERNESTO PLASCENCIA (also known as “Ernie,” “Erny,” “Ernie P” and “Erny P”)
Age: 39
California 

PAOLO ZAMORANO (also known as “PZ”)
Age: 39
California