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Former NBA player Jontay Porter pled guilty to a federal charge in Brooklyn on Wednesday for his involvement in an illegal sports betting scheme. He admitted to withdrawing from games to secure winning bets for men to whom he owed gambling debts.

As part of an agreement with prosecutors, Porter, 24, pled guilty to one count of wire fraud conspiracy during an afternoon hearing.

"I knowingly agreed to defraud sports betting companies," the former Toronto Raptors player told U.S. Magistrate Judge James R. Cho in a prepared statement. "I know what I did was wrong and unlawful."

Porter Pleads Guilty in Case Over Betting Scandal : Betting Partners Defrauded

The betting companies allegedly defrauded are identified in court papers as "the co-official sports betting partners of the NBA,'' which include DraftKings Inc. and FanDuel Inc.

Judge Cho informed Porter that he likely faces between 41 and 51 months in prison when sentenced on Dec. 18, and noted that Porter has already agreed to restitution of $456,000. Porter was released on a $250,000 bond.

In April, NBA officials announced Porter was banned from the league after they found he violated rules against sharing confidential information with sports bettors, limiting his game time for betting purposes, and betting on his own games. Federal prosecutors then unsealed charges against several men allegedly part of the scheme.

The Scheme Unfolds

According to prosecutors, Ammar Awawdeh, Timothy McCormack, Mahmud Mollah, Long Phi Pham, and Porter conspired to place "prop bets," or proposition wagers, on how he would perform in given games. Porter informed the men in advance that he would pull out of games on Jan. 26 and March 20, claiming illness or injury, ensuring they could place winning bets that he would underperform on those days, prosecutors said. Together, the men allegedly profited over $1 million wagering on the March game alone.

Pham was arrested as he attempted to board a plane to Australia with about $12,000 in cash, two cashier's checks totaling $80,000, and a series of betting slips on him, according to a criminal complaint.

Porter Pleads Guilty in Case Over Betting Scandal : Legal Proceedings

McCormack, Mollah, and Pham have been arraigned on the criminal complaint but do not appear to have entered a plea. Counsel for the defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday.

Porter is represented by Jeffrey Jensen and Eric Ryan Olson of Husch Blackwell LLP. Awawdeh is represented by Alan Gerson of Bruce Montague & Partners. Mollah is represented by Robert Caliendo. McCormack is represented by Jeffrey Chartier. Pham is represented by James Rocco Monteleon.

The government is represented by Benjamin Weintraub, David Ian Berman, and Kaitlin Teresa Farrell of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York.