| |
 Paying the price Five men sentenced in ASU point-shaving scandal
Posted: Tuesday June 22, 1999 08:30 AM
PHOENIX (AP) -- A former Arizona State player and four other men who admitted involvement in a college basketball point-shaving scandal were sentenced to prison or probation Monday. The scandal caused harm to the university, the students, the fans and to the coach, U.S. District Court Judge Robert C. Broomfield said. "This scandal leads to cynicism about what college sports is all about." Prior to sentencing, former Arizona State guard Isaac Burton Jr. apologized to his coaches, "all ASU fans, classmates and whoever," saying he didn't realize what he was getting involved in. "Hopefully you guys can forgive me." Burton, Vincent Basso, Joseph Gagliano, Joseph Mangiamele, Dominic Mangiamele, admitted they were involved in a point-shaving scheme allegedly masterminded by former ASU student Benny Silman during the 1993-94 season. Silman, 28, is serving a 46-month prison sentence for getting Stevin "Hedake" Smith and Burton to shave points in certain games so the team wouldn't beat the point spread. "At no time did [Burton] do anything intentionally that would cause the game to be affected in any way," his attorney James Logan said before sentencing. Calling Burton's apology heartfelt and saying he gained little and lost a lot by his involvement, Broomfield sentenced Burton to two months in jail, six months of home detention and three years' probation. Burton was also fined $8,000 and will have to complete 200 hours of community service. He could have faced up to 11/2 years in prison. Broomfield said Burton's jail sentence need not be continuous and he did not rule out the possibility that Burton might be able to travel outside the country during his probation. Burton played professionally last year in Cyprus. Five ASU games were bet on in Las Vegas between December 1993 and May 1994 and four were fixed successfully, prosecutors said. The bettors lost all their money in the last game of the scheme -- against Washington -- when ASU beat the point spread. After Silman and Smith agreed to the conspiracy, Silman brought in Gagliano contacted the Mangiameles. Smith asked Burton for help in fixing the first two games in return for cash. After the third the successful fix, Gagliano approached Basso, a schoolmate from Chicago. Basso, Gagliano and the Mangiameles placed bets on the last two games, against Southern California and Washington. Joseph Gagliano was sentenced to 15 months in prison, three years parole, 100 hours of community service and fined $6,000. Joseph Mangiamele was sentenced to three months in jail, eight months of home detention and four years' probation. He will also have to pay a $5,000 fine and complete 100 hours of community service. The judge said Joseph Mangiamele's sentencing took into account his unusual level of cooperation with prosecutors. "If yours isn't the highest [level], it comes close," Broomfield said. Dominic Mangiamele, Joseph's father, a former Chicago trucking executive, was sentenced to three months' probation, which includes four months of home detention, a $5,000 fines, and 100 hours of community service. Steve Wagner, Dominic Mangiamele's lawyer, said his client's lack of prison or jail time showed the judge recognized his limited involvement. He could have faced up to 16 months in prison. Vincent Basso of Buffalo Grove, Ill., was sentenced to 1 1/2 years in prison, $27,000 in fines -- the amount he profited from betting on a game between ASU and Southern California -- and three years parole. Department of Justice attorney Corbin Weiss, declined to comment on the sentences. Smith, ASU's No. 3 all-time leading scorer, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit sports bribery in 1997 and is scheduled to be sentenced on September 20.
| |||||||||||||||||
Copyright © 1999 CNN/SI. A Time Warner Company. Terms under which this service is provided to you.
| |||||||||||||||||
