Jan 17, 2026
3 min read
Philadelphia-based professional gambler and betfluencer once again features prominently in federal NCAA gambling investigation
Who is Shane Hennen, the top filly punter in the latest sports betting site?
A professional Philadelphia gambler and "betfluencer" is once again in the spotlight in a federal NCAA gambling investigation.
For Shane Hennen,The house of cards is still falling.
A federal prosecution published Thursday, the Philhyphia-based professional gambler in acting as a ringleader in a sport betting conspiracy that now involves the NCAA and the Chinese Basketball Association.SENENENSE arrested in January in connection with a gumbling case with the former part of the proportions, and is also written to the NBA that has focused on the NBA.
The latest charge against Hennen, known as "Sugar Shane", brought an international angle to the existing portrait of a high-stakes gambler who prosecutors say was ready to bribe athletes to throw games, provide devices to fix backroom card games linked to the New York Mafia, and use insider betting information to place fraudulent bets.
In all, federal prosecutors have charged Henne with conspiring to place fraudulent bets against ex-Raptors forward Jontay Porter and NBA guard Terry Rozier, bribing top CBA players to throw games and recruiting college basketball coaches to help arrange dozens of NCAA games — many of which Rivers hosted in Philly.Most notably, he was also allegedly involved in rigging mob-related poker games in New York.
And while the list of players continues to evolve with the keys by the keys, Hansen is among the most important things in arbitration next year.
The rise of the "BitFlouncer".
On social media, Hennen has catapulted from an unhappy town in Pennsylvania to a self-proclaimed "betfluencer", flying by private jet from Las Vegas to Monte Carlo and betting up to $1 million a week on sports and cards.
But Hennen's prior criminal record has come to light as a result of a federal investigation.Growing up in the Pittsburgh area, he got time for drug and gambling charges that now serve as a kind of prelude to his role in the gambling scandals.
In 2006, the Pacing, Washington native received probation in Allegheny County on charges related to a gambling scheme.According to court records, Hannon and an accomplice rented adjoining rooms at a Pittsburgh-area hotel to hold underground gambling games.While gambling in one room, an accomplice in the next room used a magnetic device to flip the loaded dice to the desired numbers.
Then one morning in 2009, the former Duquesne University basketball player was found bleeding from a stab wound on Pittsburgh's South Side, a popular nightlife.The man survived and later told police that Hennen shot him in the neck after the player confronted him about cheating at a card game.Hennen was also charged with DUI less than two weeks later, but was released.
Hannon was soon charged with two more crimes after he was caught in a parking lot with 500 grams of cocaine, en route from the Meadows Casino near Pittsburgh.
In subsequent court filings, Hennen revealed that he had been working with a local drug dealer for more than a year.Hennen, who is facing more than a decade in prison amid drug and assault-related charges, agreed to testify against his agents and was involved in a federal drug sting involving different Detroit-based drug suppliers, records show.Court records.
He served less than two and a half years in prison and four years of probation.
According to court transcripts published by Sports Illustrated in October, Hennen admitted under oath five times to defrauding other people of money.
Lee Rothman, a lawyer for his drug dealer he testified against, harshly said on cross-examination that Hennen "made a living out of cheating people out of things."
"That's right," Hennen said.
After his release in 2013, Heinen moved to Pensacola, Fla.He turned to gambling almost immediately, court records show, and also violated his probation by going out of state to attend the 2014 World Series of Poker in Las Vegas.
When Hennon landed in Philadelphia in 2015, it seemed like a fresh start.He rented an apartment near Rivers Casino in Fishtown.
The small casino will be Hennen's unlikely target for a new, more lucrative gambling program coming to the world.
From Philly to China
Local gamblers said Hennen worked the poker and baccarat tables at Rivers and used the promotion to build a reputation for the house and pave the way for six-figure sports betting, which only players with money and a track record are allowed at the casino.
By 2022, Hennen had started an online betting consulting company through an Instagram page called "Sugar Shane Wins".On social media, Heinen posts sportsbook pics of himself hanging around Vegas or Dubai, or flirting at Sixers games.
Although he marketed games on teams familiar to American gamblers, his focus — and income — was overseas, according to federal prosecutors.
He sent his photo to the court of the Sixers and a sports disability in Mississippi named Marves Fairley, the prosecutor said that they connected the gambler with Antonio Blakeney, who was the shooting guard of Louisiana State University who did a short time in the Chicago bulls.
Blakeney then returned to various international teams, including Hapoel Tel Aviv in Israel and the Nanjing Monkey Kings and Jiangsu Dragons in China.According to the federal indictment, while playing for the Dragons, Hennen and Fairley bribed Blakeney to underperform in Chinese basketball games to fix high stakes with the team and recruit others to do the same.
At one time, the Delaware casino was placing six-figure bets on several Chinese basketball games through its bookie BetRivers, sometimes for more than $200,000.Casino officials declined to comment Thursday on the latest federal charges.
Gambling has proven to be incredibly profitable, according to a 2023 message received by the federal agency.Heenen promised his colleagues that he had placed a big bet on Blakeney's team.
"Nothing in this world is guaranteed, except death and Chinese basketball," Heinen wrote.
The model also serves as a template for similar rackets the two will organize within the NCAA.
By 2024, the duo had hired basketball coaches Jalen Smith and Roderick Winkler to convince dozens of college basketball players to officiate games on their behalf.
Ultimately, 39 players from more than 17 NCAA Division 1 teams will participate, with bettors betting millions on at least 29 rigged games.
Hennen took on the latter role, authorities said, sending out a network of gamblers who bet heavily on games featuring star players who were bribed by coaches, and sometimes bribed or won by Philly.
His rise began to draw unwelcome attention to the profane.
Shortly after Hennen moved to Las Vegas in 2023, he was accused of fixing poker matches by Wesley "Wes Side" Fei, another professional gambler who claimed on social media that Hennen had defrauded him of millions.
The following year, gambling industry watchdog Integrity Compliance 360 began recording bets on six Temple University basketball games.For one, during a March 2024 game against Alabama-Birmingham, the Borgata in Atlantic City canceled bets for the game due to suspicious betting activity.Before the end of 2024, the National Collegiate Athletic Association opened an investigation into the games after rumors spread that officials were questioning Temple player Hysier Miller as part of an alleged racketeering scheme.
Then Porter, the center of the Raptors, was banned for life from the NBA, after it appeared that the league was looking for another way to bet.A few months later, Porter pleaded guilty to gambling charges — the first sign of a wide-ranging federal investigation underway by the NCAA and NBA.
The beginning of the end
In January 2025, Hennen's luck ran out.
A one-way flight to Panama en route to Colombia was stopped by authorities in Las Vegas.He had $10,000 in his pocket and claimed he had gone to South America for dental treatment.
But investigators had already zeroed in on Henen as the main mastermind behind the betting scheme involving Rozier, the former Miami Heat guard.In October, federal prosecutors in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York unsealed the indictment accusing Hennon of working with Fairley to try to dump Rozier for profit and sometimes using Philadelphia as a meeting place to funnel the proceeds to others.distribute to recipients.
Court records show that since then, Hennen has entered into plea negotiations with federal prosecutors and moved to a residence in South Philadelphia.(His attorney did not respond to a request for comment.)
During a press conference on Thursday announcing the latest charges, Wayne Jacobs, special agent in charge of the FBI's Philadelphia office, said that the actions of Hennen and his associates undermine the integrity of professional sports.
"We expect athletes to show the best of hard work, skill and discipline and not sell out to those who want to destroy the sport for their own personal gain," he said.Money being used as a tool to influence results not only hurts the game, it destroys trust and the results we value.
