NBA Poker Scandal: Who’s Named in ‘Operation Royal Flush’?

A federal indictment unsealed Thursday shed light on allegations of a widespread cheating ring in underground poker games that utilized advanced technology, mob ties and former NBA players to allegedly cheat players out of over $7 million over several years.

More than two dozen defendants are named in the indictment, most notably former pro basketball players Chauncey Billups and Damon Jones. The federal case dubbed “Operation Royal Flush” involves an array of characters, from crime family members who used threats to ensure debts were paid to poker grinders who were allegedly part of the cheating teams.

Here’s a look at the “Operation Royal Flush” defendants and the role they each play in the federal poker case.

NBA Stars

The indictment alleged that NBA coaches Chauncey Billups and Damon Jones were “Face Cards” in the games who were brought in as “well-known former professional athletes” to “attract the Victims” in the cheating scheme.

Billups, who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame last year, is the current head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers after a 17-year NBA career. Jones, meanwhile, enjoyed an 11-year NBA run before joining the Cleveland Cavaliers as an assistant coach from 2016-2018.

PokerNews learned that Kevin Garnett also participated in some of the games, but the former NBA superstar was not indicted and has not been accused of any wrongdoing. Garnett was the 2003-2004 NBA Most Valuable Player with the Minnesota Timberwolves, the team that drafted him out of high school in 1995.

Current Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier was charged in a separate indictment related to a sports gambling scheme, though he isn’t accused of being involved in the poker scheme.

Game Organizers

Several defendants are alleged to have “organized and participated in Rigged Games, as well as ‘square’ illegal poker games at various locations in New York City,” including at Washington Place and Lexington Avenue.

Those accused of organizing games in New York City include Ammar Awawdeh, Saul Becher, John Gallo, Zhen Hu, and Seth Trustman.

Cheating Teams

The indictment described “Cheating Teams” where defendants used shuffling machines that were “secretly altered to use concealed technology to read the cards in the deck, predict which player at the table had the best poker hand, and relay that information via interstate wires to an off-site operator.”

The operator then communicated the information to a member of the Cheating Team, referred to as the “Quarterback” or “Driver,” who provided signals to other members of the Cheating Team in the games.

Members of the Cheating Teams include Nelson “Spanish G” Alvarez, Louis “Lous Ap” Apicella, Ammar “Flapper Poker” Awawdeh, Eric “Spook” Earnest, John Gallo, Marco Garzon, Jamie Gilet, Tony Goodson, Kenny Han, Shane “Sugar” Hennen, Horatio Hu, John “John South” Mazzola, Nicholas Minucci, Michael Renzulli, Seth Trustman, and Sophia Wei.

A few members of the alleged Cheating Teams appear to be notable in the poker community.

Kenny Han is a tournament grinder from New York with $115,456 in Hendon Mob earnings. In October 2022, he finished runner-up for a World Series of Poker (WSOP) bracelet in a $365 online Monster Stack event.

Another New Yorker, Lee Fama, has $86,633 in live tournament earnings and most recently cashed at the July 2023 Wynn Summer Classic in Las Vegas.

Meanwhile, sports content creator Shane Hennen of Pennsylvania, who high-stake poker player Wesley Fei accused of cheating in 2023, has $11,759 in Hendon Mob earnings.

Disclaimer: PokerNews has not verified that the poker players listed on The Hendon Mob are the same poker players named in the indictment. However, their names and states of residence match.

Cheating Tech Providers

Several defendants allegedly “supplied other defendants and their co-conspirators in the Scheme with cheating technology, which included hacked shufflers, poker chip tray analyzers that secretly read cards, special contact lenses and glasses to read premarked cards, and x-ray tables that could read cards facedown.

These defendants are Tony Goodson of Georgia, Curtis “Curt” Meeks of Texas, Shane “Sugar” Hennen of Pennsylvania, and Robert “Black Rob” Stroud of Kentucky.

Crime Family Members

According to the indictment, members of the Bonanno, Gambino and Genovese crime families allegedly “used threats and intimidation to assure payment of debts” from the games in New York City. In exchange, members of these crime families allegedly “received portions of the proceeds.”

Ernest Aiello, Thomas Gelardo, and Julius Ziliani are alleged to have received proceeds on behalf of the Bonanno crime family, while John Gallo, Lee Fama, Joseph Lanni, and Angelo Ruggiero Jr. are said to have received proceeds for the Gambino crime family.

Additionally, “certain members and associates of the Gambino Crime Family” participated in the Cheating Teams, including Ammar Awawdeh, Louis Apicella, John Gallo and Nicholas Minucci.

Lexington Avenue game organizer and cheating team member Seth Trustman is alleged to be an associate of the Lucchese crime family of La Cosa Nostra.

Other Members

Other alleged operatives held miscellaneous roles. For example, New Jersey’s Osman “Albanian Bruce” Hoti is said to have provided security detail for the Lexington Avenue game.

Meanwhile, Anthony “Doc” Shnayderman is accused of having “laundered criminal proceeds from the Rigged Poker Scheme.”

The case is being tried in the U.S. District Court Eastern District of New York. A full list of defendants in the case is available in the table below.

Operation Royal Flush Defendants

_{*Images courtesy WikiMedia Commons}

Connor Richards is a Senior Editor U.S. for PokerNews and host of the Life Outside Poker podcast. Connor has been nominated for three Global Poker Awards for his writing.