Sensational development as two more A-League stars are accused of being part of group that allegedly fixed matches in gambling scandal, court documents reveal
- Accused star Kearyn Baccus has appeared in court
- The first of three indicted Macarthur FC stars to do so
- Documents claim two of their teammates were also involved
Two more A-League players have been named as participants in an alleged betting scheme involving their Macarthur FC teammates, according to court documents.
Matthew Millar and Jed Drew have been accused of participating in a criminal ring that also allegedly involved three indicted players, club captain Ulises Davila and teammates Clayton Lewis and Kearyn Baccus.
Their identities were revealed in court documents on Thursday when midfielder Baccus, 32, became the first of the trio to appear in court over the alleged plot to receive yellow cards in exchange for payment.
Macarthur FC star Kearyn Baccus (right) is pictured outside a Sydney court on Thursday after being accused of corrupting a betting result
Baccus’ A-League teammate Matthew Millar (pictured) was also accused of being part of the scheme to corrupt betting by deliberately receiving yellow cards during matches.
Macarthur’s Jed Drew (pictured) was also named as one of the accused players in a sensational move in court on Thursday
Neither Millar nor Drew have been charged, but police previously said they were looking for another Macarthur player who was not in NSW at the time of the arrests in mid-May.
Davila, 33, was arrested and charged after allegedly paying Baccus and Lewis, 27, to deliberately receive yellow cards in a scheme that NSW Police say resulted in hundreds of thousands of dollars in winnings being paid out.
All three have been released on bail.
Police said on Thursday that investigations into the alleged betting syndicate were continuing.
Macarthur FC has been contacted for comment.
Clayton Lewis (left) from Macarthur is yet to appear in court after also being charged over the alleged offences
Macarthur skipper Ulises Davila (pictured) is accused of playing a role in manipulating the awarding of yellow cards during matches on November 24 and December 9 last year
Baccus appeared in Campbelltown Local Court on Thursday but did not speak during the brief mention and did not indicate how he would plead if questioned outside court.
His lawyer Bryan Wrench told the court that the competitive nature of A-League matches must be taken into account when dealing with the case.
“It was circumstances where he was a very competitive, aggressive player,” he said.
Baccus’ case was adjourned until June 24, when he will appear at Downing Center Local Court alongside Davila.
A ‘responsible gambling’ ad featuring Baccus (pictured) was removed after he was charged
Investigators claim yellow cards, which are universally issued as warnings by referees for foul play, were manipulated during matches played on November 24 and December 9.
Macarthur drew 1–1 against Melbourne Victory on 24 November before beating Sydney FC 2–0 on 9 December.
All three accused players were booked in the December 9 match against Sydney.
Investigators also claim that there were failed attempts to do the same during matches on April 20 and May 4.
Football Australia then dropped the trio and hit them with no-fault interim suspension notices under their code of conduct.