Latest news with #JudgeCaproni
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Prison Sentence Announced For Basketball Legend Sebastian Telfair
Prison Sentence Announced For Basketball Legend Sebastian Telfair originally appeared on The Spun. At one time he looked like one of the most promising basketball prospects ever, but a series of unfortunate events are going to see Sebastian Telfair spend time behind bars. Advertisement According to Sportico, Telfair has been ordered to report to prison this August and serve six months after "failing to meet the terms of his supervised release in a health fraud case." Telfair was sentenced to time served and three years of supervised released after reaching a plea agreement in a case of defrauding the NBA's Players Health and Welfare Benefit Plan. Some of the reported violations of his supervised release include community service and meetings with his probation officer - both of which he reportedly failed to do. U.S. District Judge Valerie E. Caproni expressed frustration at Telfair in his recent sentencing. "You thumbed your nose at your probation officer and me over and over," Judge Caproni reportedly told him. A former New York Mr. Basketball and Mr. Basketball USA, Telfair went straight from high school to the NBA in 2004, going No. 13 overall to the Portland Trail Blazers in that year's draft. Advertisement Telfair would go on to play in over 500 NBA games for over a half dozen teams between 2004 and 2014, though he never averaged more than 10 points per game over the course of a season and was mostly a bench player. Telfair would play a couple more seasons of pro basketball in China before legal problems started to really mess with his entire life. Through the years, Telfair has had a number of unfortunate legal problems ranging from weapon possession to drug possession. NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 03: Sebastian Telfair #31 of the Oklahoma City Thunder looks on during a game against the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center on November 3, 2014 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by) But the health and welfare benefit plan fraud was the biggest issue by far. He was one of 18 former NBA players arrested for defrauding the fund. Advertisement Now 40 years of age, Telfair will have a lot of soul-searching to do as he prepares to report to prison. Related: Former Basketball Phenom Sebastian Telfair Receives Major Prison Sentence Prison Sentence Announced For Basketball Legend Sebastian Telfair first appeared on The Spun on Jul 1, 2025 This story was originally reported by The Spun on Jul 1, 2025, where it first appeared.
Daily Mail
01-07-2025
- Sport
- Daily Mail
Disgraced ex-NBA star sentenced to jail for two years after pleading guilty to $4million healthcare scam
Former NBA star Sebastian Telfair has been sentenced to six months in jail after failing to meet the terms of his supervised release in relation to a health fraud case. Back in 2021, Telfair was among a number of NBA stars who were arrested following a $4million health care scam done by defrauding the league's health insurance plan. Two years later, the former NBA star pleaded guilty to charges of fraud - which amounted to $350,000 from his own claims - and was sentenced to three years of probation. However, it has now emerged that Telfair has since failed to abide by the court-ordered community service and failed to report to his probation officer. According to Sportico, Telfair has now been ordered to report to prison on August 12th and will serve six months behind bars for his actions. The outlet claim that U.S. District Judge Valerie E. Caproni told Telfair: 'You thumbed your nose at your probation officer and me over and over'. The outlet further claim that, in a hearing on Thursday, Telfair told officials that 'things' were 'stacked against' him claimed he sometimes gets 'stuck in the mud'. He later acknowledged that that he missed his appointments with the probation officer and offered an apology. However, judge Caproni was not convinced over Telfair's claims and insisted that he had done 'absolutely nothing' to help his case. Telfair, meanwhile, has a previous criminal record with two separate gun charges - with the most recent being in 2017 when Telfair was found with weapons and marijuana during a traffic stop in Brooklyn. The case went to trial and in 2019, he was found guilty of felonious weapons possession and sentenced to three years in prison. Telfair was initially tipped as one of the NBA's most exciting prospects when he broke into the league back in 2004 but things didn't turn out as expected for the Lincoln High graduate. After struggling during two years at Portland, he went on to become one of the league's notorious journeymen after also suiting up for the Clippers, Suns, Raptors, Timberwolves and more.
