scandal

At least 20 people allegedly colluded with known gamblers to fix basketball games, according to a federal indictment filed Thursday.

The indictment filed in Philadelphia cites charges of “bribery in sporting contests” and conspiracy to commit wire fraud, to fix men’s college and Chinese professional basketball games.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania announced the sweeping indictment that involves players from 17 college teams from 2022 through 2025. The scheme also involved two gamblers — Shane Hennen and Marves Fairley — who were indicted in October for their alleged role in an NBA sports gambling scheme that included Miami Heat star Terry Rozier.

The most prominent player indicted Thursday was Antonio Blakeney, the leading scorer at Louisiana State in 2016-2017 and a veteran of two seasons with the Chicago Bulls. The shooting guard has played for professional teams in China, Israel and Bahrain since last playing in the NBA in 2019.

According to the indictment, the scheme began with attempts in the 2022–23 season to fix games in the Chinese Basketball Assn. Blakeney, who played for the Jiangsu Dragons and led the league in scoring with 32.1 points a game, is alleged to have been recruited by Hennen and Fairley to shave points.

Hennen and Fairley were included in the indictment along with others who worked as AAU coaches or personal trainers and recruited players to shave points, often in the first halves of games. Prop bets — wagers on specific events or occurrences within a game that aren’t tied to the final score — also were placed on certain outcomes based on the agreements with players. Payments of as much as $20,000 were made to players, the indictment alleges.

“Protecting competition integrity is of the utmost importance for the NCAA. We are thankful for law enforcement agencies working to detect and combat integrity issues and match manipulation in college sports,” NCAA president Charlie Baker said in a statement Thursday. “The pattern of college basketball game integrity conduct revealed by law enforcement today is not entirely new information to the NCAA. Through helpful collaboration and with industry regulators, we have finished or have open investigations into almost all of the teams in today’s indictment.”

Colleges under investigation include DePaul, Saint Louis, La Salle, Eastern Michigan, Robert Morris, Fordham, Buffalo, Tulane, Northwestern (La.) State, Nicholls State, Southern Mississippi, North Carolina A&T, Kennesaw State, Coppin State, New Orleans, Abilene Christian and Alabama State.

The indictment estimates the gamblers conspired with as many as 39 players across those 17 Division I teams to fix games.

“Our enforcement staff has opened sports betting integrity investigations into approximately 40 student-athletes from 20 schools over the past year,” Baker said. “While some of the investigations are ongoing, 11 student-athletes from seven schools were recently found to have bet on their own performances, shared information with known bettors, and/or engaged in game manipulation to collect on bets they—or others—placed. This behavior resulted in a permanent loss of NCAA eligibility for all of them.

“Additionally, 13 student-athletes from eight schools were found to have failed to cooperate in the sports betting integrity investigation by providing false or misleading information, failing to provide relevant documentation and/or refusing to be interviewed by the enforcement staff. None of them are competing today.”

At least four of the players charged are currently active: Simeon Cottle of Kennesaw State, Camian Shell of Delaware State, Carlos Hart of Eastern Michigan and Oumar Koureissi of Texas Southern. Cottle, in fact, scored 21 points Wednesday night in Kennesaw State’s victory over Florida International and is the leading scorer in Conference USA.

Baker said the NCAA tries to root out sports betting violations through a “layered integrity monitoring program” that covers more than 20,000 games, but admits the organization can’t do it alone.

“We still need the remaining states, regulators and gaming companies to eliminate threats to integrity — such as collegiate prop bets — to better protect athletes and leagues from integrity risks and predatory bettors,” he said. “We also will continue to cooperate fully with law enforcement. We urge all student-athletes to make well-informed choices to avoid jeopardizing the game and their eligibility.”

That escalated quickly. We’re barely into 2026, and events are already unfolding that could meaningfully reshape the political landscape.

The death of Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old mother and U.S. citizen who was shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Minneapolis on Wednesday, has the potential to shake the political landscape in ways reminiscent of George Floyd’s killing in 2020.

The Trump administration initially claimed Good “weaponized her vehicle” in an act of “domestic terrorism,” an account that appears to be contradicted by video evidence. Whether the incident escalates into a broader political reckoning — or fades from public attention — may determine its lasting effect on President Trump’s popularity and his immigration policies.

Meanwhile, Trump’s decision to invade Venezuela and capture then-President Nicolás Maduro remains controversial, even among some of his fans.

The attack drew immediate criticism from Marjorie Taylor Greene, Tucker Carlson and Laura Loomer, with Carlson and Loomer going so far as to float the claim that Maduro’s ouster was really about imposing gay marriage on Venezuela (this is impressive, because it manages to combine foreign policy, culture war panic and complete nonsense into a single sentence).

But this schism isn’t limited to ex-House members, podcasters and conspiracy theorists. Inside the administration, the balance of power appears to be tilting away from the noninterventionists and toward the hawks — at least, for now.

The current beneficiary of this shift is Secretary of State Marco Rubio. As recently as last month, JD Vance, who has generally staked out an anti-interventionist posture, seemed like Trump’s obvious heir. Now, Rubio’s stock is up (if “Lil Marco” falls short, he can always settle for Viceroy of Venezuela).

That’s not to say Rubio is anywhere near being Trump’s clear successor. Venezuela could disappear from the headlines as quickly as it arrived, buried beneath the next crisis, scandal or social media outburst. Or it could go sideways and dominate headlines for years or decades.

Military adventurism has an uncanny habit of doing exactly that.

If Venezuela turns into a slow-motion disaster, Democrats will reap the benefits as will the GOP’s “America First” contingent.

But January hasn’t just presented a possible touchstone for Republicans; Democrats have been hit with their own challenge, too: the Minnesota fraud scandal, which has already pushed Democratic Gov. Tim Walz out of a reelection bid. It is the kind of story that reinforces voters’ worst suspicions about their party.

During the past five years, parts of Minnesota’s Somali diaspora became entangled in alleged fraudulent activity, reportedly submitting millions of dollars in claims for social services that were not actually rendered.

The details are complicated; the implications are not. Public programs retain support only when voters believe they are competently managed, and this story suggests the opposite.

The fact that the scandal involves the Somali community makes it even more combustible. Fair or not, it provides ready-made ammunition for those eager to stoke racial resentment, discredit refugee policies and turn bureaucratic failure into an indictment on Democrats.

The fallout extends well beyond Minnesota. Kamala Harris has been signaling interest in another presidential run, and Walz was her vice-presidential pick in what was already a truncated and awkward campaign. That decision alone won’t sink a future bid for her, but it certainly doesn’t strengthen her already dubious case that she has exceptional political judgment.

More troubling for Democrats is the fear that Minnesota is the tip of the iceberg. Walz’s exodus was sparked by a right-wing YouTuber who started doing some sleuthing — and brought attention to years-old investigations by the Walz and Biden administrations. Other influencers are already promising similar exposés elsewhere.

Right-wing podcaster Benny Johnson, for example, has announced plans to descend on California, declaring it “the fraud capital of the world.” Newsom returned fire with a vicious Trump-like retort, demonstrating once again why he became the Democratic frontrunner in 2025.

Newsom’s Twitter rejoinder aside, it’s not crazy to think that the Democrats’ recent momentum could be squandered if it turns out more of these scandals exist and have been ignored, downplayed or (worse) covered up.

It’s risky to describe anything in modern politics as a turning point, because each week reliably produces something that eclipses the last outrage. Still, the opening days of this new year already feel consequential. Seeds have been planted. Whether they mature is the question.

Buckle up. It’s only January.

Matt K. Lewis is the author of “Filthy Rich Politicians” and “Too Dumb to Fail.”

IT’S fair to assume Will Smith had high hopes for a better year ahead after a disastrous stretch of career lows and romance woes.

But as 2026 rang in, the fallen Oscar-winner and rapper was slapped with a lawsuit amid claims of sexual harassment and wrongful termination.

Violinist Brian King Joseph, who performed on Will’s 2025 tour, Based On A True Story, accuses the A-lister of “grooming” him while they worked together.

And he alleges that when he reported things to management, he was kicked off the tour and “shamed” by the powers that be.

According to Brian, who reached the top three on America’s Got Talent in 2018, he was hired by Will in 2024 after auditioning for him at his home.

Will apparently told him: “You and I have a special connection.”

TRAGIC LOSS

Tommy Lee Jones’ daughter ‘found dead on New Year’s Day in luxury hotel’

‘PREDATOR’ SMITH

Will Smith sued for sexual harassment by male tour violinist & TV star

Then, while touring with him in Las Vegas last March, he says he came back to his hotel room at 11pm and found it had been “unlawfully entered” by an “unknown person”, who had left a handwritten note, as well as random items including wipes, a beer bottle, an earring and a bottle of HIV medication.

The note read: “Brian, I’ll be back no later [sic] 5:30, just us” with a drawn heart, and signed: “Stone F.”

In legal filings, Brian says he reported the incident to hotel security and Will’s management out of fear someone would return to his room to “engage in sexual acts” with him.

But after doing so, he alleges, he was “shamed” by tour management and given the boot, causing him “severe emotional distress, economic loss, reputational harm and other damages” as well as “PTSD and other mental illness”.

‘Lost all self-control’

According to the lawsuit, a member of Will’s tour management told Brian, “Everyone is telling me that what happened to you is a lie, nothing happened, and you made the whole thing up”, court documents state.

Though not naming Will, 57, as the unknown person who entered his room, court papers say the “facts suggest” the star was “deliberately grooming and priming Mr Joseph for further sexual exploitation”.

He is now demanding a jury trial.

Will denies all allegations, with his attorney Allen B. Grodsky slamming Brian’s claims as “false, baseless and reckless”.

He added: “They are categorically denied, and we will use all legal means available to . . . ensure that the truth is brought to light.”

A court battle would be an ugly circus for Will at a time when he could really use some good news in the public eye.

After all, things have ostensibly gone from bad to worse for the former blockbuster king over the past few years.

It’s now approaching the four-year anniversary of the Oscar slap that was heard around the world, when an irate Will stormed the stage at the 94th Academy Awards and hit comedian Chris Rock across the face.

The incident was sparked after Chris made a joke about Will’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s bald head, which was a result of her alopecia, and amid Will’s calls to “keep my wife’s name out of your f***ing mouth!”.

It was supposed to be Will’s night of triumph as he finally received an Oscar for his critically acclaimed performance in King Richard.

Instead, it went down in infamy as the night he lost all self-control.

He was duly given a seven-year ban from all Academy, Grammy, Tony and Emmy events and, in the aftermath, shirked the spotlight.

Since then, things haven’t gone smoothly.

In fact, his road to redemption has been paved with constant knocks and embarrassing detours, personally and professionally.

In particular, his unconventional relationship with Jada, 54, has been the subject of much scrutiny and confusion.

Having long been pegged as one of Hollywood’s golden couples, the pair hit headlines in 2020 when they revealed during an episode of Jada’s Facebook series Red Table Talk that she’d had an affair a few years before with singer August Alsina.

At the time, Jada described it as an “entanglement”.

As a result, she and Will had even more of a point to prove when they stepped on to the red carpet at that fateful 2022 Oscars.

But a year later, Jada dropped a motherlode of truth bombs about their relationship in her 2023 memoir, Worthy.

In the book, and on its promo trail, she revealed that — despite putting on a united front in public — she and Will had been separated for seven years and no longer lived together.

According to Jada, she’d kept up the facade because Will “wasn’t ready” to tell the world.

So instead, she said, she took the bullet, painting herself as “the adulterous wife” in the “false narrative” they created.

While the pair had no intention of divorcing — and still have not done so — Will was reportedly “humiliated” by Jada’s candidness.

They used to live by their famous slogan, paraphrased from Will’s movie Bad Boys: “We ride together, we die together, bad marriage for life.”

But Jada’s revelations apparently left Will feeling more isolated than ever — which, insiders said at the time, was a bitter pill to swallow after he defended her at the Oscars.

Crashed and burned

As things stand, Will and Jada still have no plans to officially end their 28-year marriage.

They came together to wish their daughter Willow a happy birthday in October, and have since been reportedly pictured together in public.

But as news spread of Brian’s lawsuit against Will, Jada stayed noticeably quiet.

She previously said that, at some stage, they’ll live together again, but only because, “it’s getting apparent to me that [Will’s] gonna need someone to take care of him” — making her ex sound more like a burden.

Meanwhile, Will’s attempt to reclaim his place on the A-list have seen things go from bad to worse.

In late 2023, as the dust settled on Jada’s marriage revelations, Will was accused of previously having sex with his Fresh Prince of Bel-Air co-star Duane Martin.

In an interview with internet personality Tasha K, Brother Bilaal — who described himself as Will’s ex-personal assistant — said he’d walked in on the alleged act.

A court battle would be an ugly circus for Will at a time when he could really use some good news in the public eye

On podcast Unwine with Tasha K, he also compared the size of Will’s manhood to a “pinky toe”.

In response, Will’s spokesperson slammed the claims as “completely fabricated” and said they were considering taking legal action.

No action was taken, but Brother Bilaal hasn’t gone quietly.

In fact, he’s since filed a $3million lawsuit against Jada, alleging “emotional distress”.

Neither Will nor Jada have commented, but a hearing is scheduled for March 9, inevitably casting another shadow over them.

Then, of course, there is Will’s damp squib of an attempt to reignite his music career that crashed and burned with last year’s tour.

In late 2023, as the dust settled on Jada’s marriage revelations, Will was accused of previously having sex with his Fresh Prince of Bel-Air co-star Duane Martin

Having long proven himself as a multi- hyphenate entertainer, it should have been a safe bet for Will to return to his rapper roots after his Oscar disgrace.

That way, he could continue to make us miss him on the big screen, while still connecting to his fans and making up for a few years of lost income.

So, his comeback tour, Based On A True Story, really was supposed to be an all-out triumph.

‘Used to be cool’

However, promotional footage started going viral for all the wrong reasons, after fans accused the star of using AI in crowd reactions.

In the film — which was posted to Will’s YouTube channel — there were a whole host of bizarre visual errors, including blurred faces, oddly shaped hands and one sign that read “FR6SH CRINCE”.

As one fan said: “Imagine being this rich and famous and having to use AI footage of crowds and bot comments on your video. Tragic, man. You used to be cool.”

Will looked a shadow of his former self as he kicked off the European leg of his tour in front of 6,000 fans in Scarborough at TK Maxx Presents . . . last summer, followed by Wolverhampton Civic Hall and the O2 Academy in Brixton.

Let’s remember, this is a former superstar who performed in front of more than half-a-million people at the Live 8 event in Philadelphia in 2005.

Imagine being this rich and famous and having to use AI footage of crowds and bot comments on your video. Tragic, man. You used to be cool

A fan

The same year, he set a Guinness World Record after attending an unprecedented three movie premieres in one day.

He hightailed it across the UK to promote romcom Hitch in Manchester, Birmingham and London.

Back then, he was untouchable, with two US No1s under his belt and the ability to command leading- man status in films including Men In Black (and its sequels), as well as Ali, The Pursuit Of Happyness and I Am Legend.

But nothing lasts for ever, and Will’s much more modest tour last year was a reminder of how far he’s fallen from grace.

He put on a brave face, but the online comments spoke for themselves.

One fan called him “pathetic” and told him to “enjoy” his retirement instead of seeking his former glory.

Now, as the former Hollywood icon begins the year facing a lawsuit, it’s fair to say he is staring down the barrel of yet another challenging 12 months.

Having always relied on his family to support him, the world will be watching to see if he steps out with Jada and their children, Jaden, 27, and Willow, 25 — plus his older son Trey, 33, from a previous marriage.

But as things stand, all parties had yesterday remained silent.

It may be early days for 2026, but Will has certainly taken a sharp detour from the golden road he trod for so long.

With no movies on the docket, he’s hanging his hat on upcoming National Geographic docu-series, Pole To Pole With Will Smith.

OUR team of intrepid showbiz reporters have brought you all the latest on the Brooklyn Beckham saga, blow by blow accounts of JoJo Siwa dumping her girlfriend for Chris Hughes and we broke the news about Danny Jones kissing Maura Higgins to name just a few astonishing showbiz scoops from 2025.

But while we’ve been filling the paper and gracing the internet with story after story, there’s actually been A LOT we haven’t told you… until now.

We may not be able to name names. but we CAN give you all the dirty secrets the stars definitely don’t want you to know… Prepare to be shocked.

A SCARY TYPE OF LOVE 

We shook our heads in disbelief when we were told all a Love Islander had a violent criminal family member.

No wonder her boyfriend was scared to dump her despite seeming completely over her as their romance hit the rocks. Once he’d heard about the jailed man’s crimes, he’d be scared to upset her.

GUILTY GIFT 

One huge reality star managed to keep the details of an explosive breakup with her ex under wraps.

It’s known that she cheated on her former flame before their split, but what remains secret is that the person she cheated with was married, and their affair sparked a very messy divorce. Worse still, the star was gifted a Rolex from her lover… which belonged to his wife.

HOT AND STEAMY

One former I’m A Celebrity star has been using the sauna at a well known private members club for their illicit hookups.

Fellow members are thought to have been shocked when they spotted him, but have quickly got used to his steamy antics. 

THEY’VE GOT THE SAME TYPE

These two TV stars appeared blissfully happy when they got wed but we were told they were both having it off with the same bloke before the big day.

Affairs are nothing new but it turns out these two had no idea they were copping off with the same person. When that gossip finally filters back, we expect divorce papers to be drawn up pretty fast.

MONEY TALKS

Tis the season to be jolly, but we can reveal a well known BBC star turned into a real life Grinch after attending an Uber Xmas party where guests were given one box containing an uber code.

After making full use of the free bar this person proceeded to nab the lot and hastily open them all in the lift…

NOT SURE PICTURE PERFECT

Our jaws hit the floor when we were told all about the well-loved female BBC star who showed an explicit and unwanted picture of a penis to a junior member of staff.

The woman, who ranked among the Corporation’s top 50 highest paid this year, asked the junior member of staff about her preferences and then showed her a nude image on her mobile phone.

But her actions were considered so offensive that the female talent was called in by execs and asked to apologise.

PARTY POOPER

It’s not just celebs who haven’t been on their best behaviour this year. The father of one very well-known bride caused a scene at her wedding by getting smashed and being inappropriate with female guests.

He spent the rest of the next day hungover and phoning round everyone apologising. 

REALITY BITES

One reality star was shouting from the roof tops when she got a new man this year.

But when the latest love of her life didn’t turn up for her birthday party, she wasted no time in hopping into bed with her ex – that very same night. And her new bloke is still none the wiser. 

TELLING TALES

Celebs will do anything to keep themselves out of the news  – like the TV star who was caught getting up to no good in the toilet. Let’s just say she looked a little too familiar with a little bag of white stuff.

She begged for her secret to be kept hidden and offered up some scandal on another star, one of her pals, instead. No wonder they say keep your enemies closer.