Four Iowa State Athletes’ Betting Charges Dismissed
Some Charged in Case Have Already Pled Guilty
The controversial sports betting charges against four former Iowa State student-athletes came to an end on Friday. Assistant Story County attorney Benjamin Matchan asked that charges against Eyioma Uwazurike, Jirehl Brock, Paniro Johnson and Isaiah Lee be dropped.
The prosecutor’s move occurred just a few days after defendants released an email from GeoComply showing state investigators may have committed inappropriate use of its software. The state then decided to ask for the Iowa State athletes’ betting charges dismissed.
“Due to this newly discovered evidence, the State no longer believes further prosecution in this matter is in the interests of justice,” Matchan wrote in his motion to dismiss the charges.
The judge accepted the state’s request for dismissal, writing, “The court finds and concludes that the State’s motion to dismiss is filed for good cause and indeed serves the interests of justice.”
Nearly two dozen Iowa and Iowa State athletes were charged last year with felony charges of identity theft and tampering with records. Sixteen of them simply made a guilty plea for underage gambling on the sports scores and odds. They then had the identity theft charges dropped.
Identity theft charges were filed due to the athletes opening sports betting accounts under different names. Typically a friend or relative’s name was used to open betting accounts.
Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation Exceeds Authority
At the center of the Iowa State athletes’ betting charges dismissed scenario is the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation. It had been granted limited use of GeoComply’s Kibana software in 2022. The software detects where bets are placed from to ensure people are betting in one of the states where sports betting is legal.
The defense had filed a motion to suppress any evidence gathered from DCI’s use of Kibana. The attorneys stated a warrant had not been obtained prior to its usage. The attorney’s also contended a DCI agent used the software in excess of its permitted use when bets were tracked inside Iowa State athletic facilities.
GeoComply terminated DCI’s use of its software on Jan. 26. The company’s email to the Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission stated, “the DCI may have exceeded its intended and outlined scope of its Kibana access-and-use privileges.”
None of the four athletes who had charges dropped was a large bettor. The DCI charged Johnson with placing roughly 1,300 wagers totaling close to $46,000. Brock placed nearly the same number of bets for roughly $12,000. Lee placed 115 bets for $885 and Uwazurike had 801 bets for close to $21,400.
Uwazurike remains suspended by the Denver Broncos. He is eligible to apply for reinstatement to the NFL “no earlier than July 24, 2024.” Uwazurike was accused of betting on five Broncos games in his rookie season in 2022. Attorneys for all four players have recommended they file charges against the state of Iowa.
There is still one case against University of Iowa men’s basketball student manager Evan Schuster that is still pending. It is unknown how the the Iowa State athletes’ betting charges dismissed will affect his case. An additional case was referred to juvenile court. Those proceedings are private.
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