Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy was attacked in prison by a fellow inmate who claimed he had ties to the New York mob, a spokesman for Donaghy said on Thursday.
The attacker hit Donaghy in the right knee with a stick or club in November at a minimum security federal prison in Pensacola, Pat Zaranek of Executive Prison Consultants said.
Donaghy, who pleaded guilty in New York to conspiracy to engage in wire fraud and transmitting betting information through interstate commence, is serving a 15-month sentence.
“Verbally, there was a comment made that they were going to shoot him in the head and break his knee caps,” Zaranek said.
Donaghy is a client of Zaranek’s firm, which advises federal defendants — mostly white collar criminals — on how to cope with prison and make the transition back into society once they are released.
The attack left Donaghy with chronic pain in his knee and in need of surgery, which may not be performed until he is released, Zaranek said.
“He wants to get out for obvious reasons, but he also needs to get the knee fixed,” Zaranek said. “So, he doesn’t want the fixing of the knee to forestall the release.”
Federal Bureau of Prisons spokeswoman Traci Billingsley declined comment.
Donaghy reported to the camp in September. He said he took thousands of dollars from a professional gambler in exchange for insider tips on NBA games, including some he worked.
Zaranek didn’t know the attacker’s name but said he was removed from the camp at Saufley Field, a naval installation, while Donaghy was given protective status.
He said reports on the attack will not be made public until Donaghy is released.
Donaghy, 42, expects to be transferred to a halfway house in Tampa on Wednesday to complete his sentence, Zaranek said.
He is scheduled for release on Oct. 24. Donaghy lived in Bradenton, just south of Tampa, before he went to prison. His wife divorced him after his arrest. They have four daughters.
“He’s very remorseful,” Zaranek said. “He has a rather compelling story, and it rather tragically illustrates the destructive power of addiction to gambling.”
While in prison, Donaghy has begun working on a tell-all book on “how he picked those winners 70 to 80 percent of the time and about the knowledge of the special relationships that exist between referees, players and coaches,” Zaranek said.
“To understand his addiction, what transpired, you have to understand what led up to it during his 13 years in pro basketball and the whole culture of what he perceived as fraud and manipulation in the NBA,” he said.
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
The famously raucous Hong Kong Sevens are to start today in a big test for a shiny new stadium at the heart of a major US$3.85 billion sports park in the territory. Officials are keeping their fingers crossed that the premier event in Hong Kong’s sporting and social calendar goes off without a hitch at the 50,000-seat Kai Tak Stadium. They hope to entice major European soccer teams to visit in the next few months, with reports in December last year saying that Liverpool were in talks about a pre-season tour. Coldplay are to perform there next month, all part of Hong Kong’s
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
Marcus Rashford’s first goals for Aston Villa on Sunday inspired a 3-0 win against Preston North End that sent his side into the FA Cup semi-finals for the first time in 10 years. Rashford struck twice in the second half at Deepdale to end Preston’s stubborn resistance before Jacob Ramsey wrapped up Villa’s long-awaited return to the last four. Villa are to face Crystal Palace — 3-0 winners at Fulham on Saturday — in the semi-finals at Wembley Stadium in London. Revitalized since joining Villa on loan from Manchester United during the January transfer window, Rashford is beginning to show the form that