IOWA, USA — EDITOR'S NOTE: The above video originally aired on Wednesday, Jan. 24
More current and former student-athletes are facing charges for alleged sports betting across multiple Iowa universities.
More than 20 athletes from the University of Iowa and Iowa State University were charged with Tampering With Records, which is an aggravated misdemeanor. They are accused of illegally gambling on college sports, some even of betting on their own schools or games.
Most of the charges were filed in August 2023, though many gambling or betting incidents happened months to years prior and used other people's identities.
According to court documents filed in Story County, Eddie Lemos, a redshirt sophomore defensive back at Iowa State, wagered just under $979 in 270 online bets on DraftKings using a relative's account, including two bets on ISU basketball games. Lemos was allegedly underage at the time of his betting.
Similarly, Iowa State redshirt sophomore wide receiver Tyler Claiborne is accused of illegally betting 43 times using a relative's name.
Former ISU defensive lineman Howard Brown allegedly placed 67 mobile bets for a total of $815 wagered, even gambling on a 2022 ISU vs. Texas Tech game he played in.
Jeremiah Mathis III of Iowa State reportedly spent $556 on 183 wagers using someone else's name in 2021 while he was underage.
Court documents claim ISU wrestler Drew Woodley used a relative's DraftKings account to place a total of 311 bets worth $2,251, including ISU basketball and football games. Of those bets, 180 of those occurred when he was still underage. Woodley also reportedly took part in fantasy sports competitions that had "monetary stakes".
Another Iowa State wrestler, redshirt freshman Nathan Schon, made 865 wagers totaling over $11,700 using a relative's identity, according to court documents. In addition, investigators say he completed 2,240 casino transactions collectively coming to $27,700 in his home state of Pennsylvania. All of the wagers were made while Schon was under the age of 21.
Osun Osunniyi, a former Iowa State men's basketball player, has a warrant out for his arrest after he failed to show up for a Sept. 14, 2023 court hearing for the $125 spent across 21 wagers, including multiple NCAA college basketball events.
Jacob English also placed a sizeable $13,600 worth of bets over 2,633 wagers using a FanDuel account registered to a family member, court documents state. He was charged in Story County.
The investigation was conducted by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation and utilized geomapping technology to pinpoint the locations where some bets were placed — often pointing toward athletic locker rooms or student dorms.
On Wednesday, the Iowa Department of Public Safety released a statement regarding how the sports betting investigation was conducted, calling their gathering methods "constitutionally permissible".
Lemons, Brown, Claiborne, Mathis III, Woodley, Schon and English all have since pleaded guilty to Underage Gambling and were required to pay a $645 fine.
Here's who's been charged so far, though many have already pleaded guilty to underage gambling:
Iowa State University
Football
- Hunter Dekkers
- Dodge Sauser
- Eyioma Uwazurike
- Jirehl Brock
- DeShawn Hanika
- Isaiah Lee
- Jake Remsburg
- Howard Brown III
- Edwardo Lemos
- Tyler Claiborne
- Jeremiah Mathis
Basketball
- Jeremiah Williams
- Osun Osunniyi
Wrestling
- Drew Woodley
- Paniro Johnson
University of Iowa
Football
- Aaron Blom
- Harry Bracy II
- Arland Bruce IV
- Jack Johnson
- Owen O’Brien
Basketball
- Ahron Ulis
- Evan Schuster
Baseball
- Gehrig Christensen