Do these Jontay Porter texts, $10K and 1-way ticket to Colombia make me look suspicious?
Listen, I’m no criminal mastermind here. But I’ve watched enough movies and seen enough true crime shows to know some common pitfalls of those who make their money outside the law.
So when I saw the latest court filings in the Jontay Porter case, there were a few red flags that immediately made clear these alleged schemers weren’t exactly Mensa candidates.
We already know Porter — the former Toronto Raptors benchwarmer banned for life by the NBA for betting on his own props — wasn’t smart enough to figure out how easily he’d be caught. His alleged co-conspirators, however, still had a remote chance to escape justice. All they had to do was discreetly erase any digital trail connecting them to Porter, go off the grid for a bit and lay low.
What they should not, by any means, attempt is sneaking out of the country with a a clearly suspicious amount of cash, a one-way ticket to Colombia and multiple cell phones. Even TSA is going to know to flag that bag immediately. Yet, that’s exactly what (ANOTHER) one of Porter’s alleged associates tried to get away with on Sunday in Las Vegas.
Per USA Today:
Authorities arrested 39-year-old Shane Hennen in Las Vegas on Sunday as he was attempting to board a one-way flight to Colombia. Hennen had multiple cell phones and around 10,000 in cash when he was arrested.
Hennen is the sixth person charged in the alleged betting scheme involving Porter, and along with Hennen’s arrest, federal authorities disclosed a text message Porter sent explaining how, during a Jan. 22, 2024, game against the Memphis Grizzlies, he planned to take himself out of the game.
Wearing a T-shirt that says “FBI come find me” may have been more clandestine.
Every new detail about this scandal only reaffirms how sophomoric and half-baked this all was. As a reminder: the scheme was so brazen the sportsbooks didn’t even pay out the winning bets in real time. They instead immediately flagged the wagers and froze the accounts connected to them. Because, who on Earth would wager thousands on Jontay Porter?
Amazingly, this is the second alleged co-conspirator caught at an airport after purchasing a one-way ticket to flee the country. And, look, I know this is far from the point here. But if you are trying to avoid authorities and have thousands in cash on hand, just go up to the ticket counter and buy a return trip. At least give a tiny appearance that you may come home.
Will the Feds buy this? No, of course not. But, come on, at least pretend you’re trying to fool them.
It’s hard to imagine this will make much of a difference anyways since the alleged conspirators couldn’t bother to spend 30 seconds looking up which countries extradite to the United States.
Porter, meanwhile, pleaded guilty in July to wire fraud conspiracy and awaits sentencing in May. He faces up to 20 years in prison.