Ex-NBA players sentenced to prison over fraud case
Apr 15, 2013; Dallas, TX, USA; Memphis Grizzlies point guard Keyon Dooling (55) waits for play to resume between the Dallas Mavericks and the Grizzlies at the American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Two former NBA players have been sentenced to prison time over their roles in a major fraud scheme.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced in a press release on Friday that Keyon Dooling has been sentenced to 30 months in prison and Alan Anderson received a 24-month sentence for organizing a scheme to defraud the NBA of millions in healthcare benefits claims. Anderson and 17 other former NBA players were arrested in October 22 after investigators determined they made roughly $4 million in fraudulent reimbursement claims for healthcare services that were never rendered.
Prosecutors say Anderson submitted $121,000 in false claims for himself and recruited others to join the scheme, which resulted in an additional $710,000 in fraudulent claims.
Dooling, the former vice president of the NBA Players Association, was arrested last April. Evidence showed that he received $363,000 from fraudulent claims and facilitated $194,295 in claims from other former players.
Both Dooling and Anderson have been forced to pay restitution in addition to their prison sentences. Dooling has been ordered to pay nearly $1 million while Anderson was ordered to pay a total of around $250,000.
Dooling, the 10th overall pick in the 2000 NBA Draft, played for seven different teams across 13 seasons. The 42-year-old was an assistant coach with the Utah Jazz at the time of his arrest last year.
Anderson, 40, went undrafted in 2005 before signing with the Charlotte Bobcats. He bounced back and forth between playing in the NBA and internationally. Anderson was last with the Los Angeles Clippers in 2017.
