An NBA assistant coach, who is from South Florida, was arrested for an alleged fraud scheme
Utah Jazz assistant coach Keyon Dooling, who graduated from Fort Lauderdale Dillard in 1998 before playing in the NBA, was arrested Wednesday as part of criminal fraud case involving 18 former NBA players charged with defrauding the league’s health and welfare benefit plan, the Associated Press reported.
Dooling, 41, is a former vice president of the NBA’s Players Association and was added to the criminal case on Wednesday, according to the AP.
Two others, unnamed but mentioned as a doctor and dentist that were medical providers during the scheme, were added to the indictment along with Dooling, ESPN reported.
The case was first brought forth by federal officials in October, where former NBA players were alleged to “collect $2.5 million from the benefit plan,” the Associated Press reported.
“It is a case concerning his time at the National Basketball Players Association, prior to him joining our organization,” the Jazz said in a statement shared with the AP. “He has been put on paid administrative leave,” the Jazz said. “Due to the ongoing legal process, we will refrain from further comment.”
Officials said Dooling, “allegedly engaged in the scheme and recruited other co-conspirators to join the scheme,” according to the AP.
Authorities said the scheme lasted from at least 2017 to 2020 and the charges brought forth for the alleged participants was health care fraud and wire conspiracy, the AP reported.
Dooling’s inclusion in the updated indictment alleges he “pocketed about $350,000 of plan proceeds illegally. In all, it said about $5 million in false claims were submitted, though claimants did not receive as much in proceeds,” the AP reported.
This story was originally published April 28, 2022 at 11:47 AM.
