Posted on: February 6, 2026, 08:49h.
Last updated on: February 6, 2026, 08:49h.
- Former major leaguer found guilty of obstructing justice
- Feds investigating illegal sports betting ring
Former Major Leaguer Yasiel Puig has been found guilty by a jury today of obstructing justice and lying to federal officials who were investigating an illegal sports betting ring.
Puig was charged after he was asked about his involvement with bookies in an illegal sports betting operation, with federal prosecutors saying he made false statements to them on several occasions in 2o22.
On the false statement charge – Puig, a Cuban national, in 2019 as part of his naturalization process lied on his immigration form by stating he never engaged in illegal gambling or received income from illegal gambling.
Illegal Sports Betting Operation
Puig made a deal with prosecutors in August 2022, agreeing to plead guilty to one count of lying to federal investigators in exchange for closing the case. However, Puig later changed his mind and pulled out of the agreement, saying he wanted to clear his name. Federal prosecutor charged him in January 2023.
According to a statement issued today by the United States Attorney’s Office Central District of California, evidence presented during the 13-day trial that started in late January showed that Puig started placing debt in May 2019 with an illegal gambling business run by Wayne Nix.
Bets Made Through Third Party
Puig was making bets through Nix’s business via a third party, and by June 2019 owed Nix $282,900 in sports betting losses.
Puig was instructed to make a check or wire transfer to a Nix gambling client named Joseph Schottenstein, to whom the Nix business owed $200,000 in gambling winnings. On June 25 2019 Puig withdrew $200,000 from a Bank of America branch in Glendale then purchased two cashiers’ checks for $100,000, each made payable to Schottenstein.
Lied to Federal Investigators
However the Attorney’s Office statement said Puig did not immediately send the checks because of a dispute over his balance and access to Nix’s sports betting websites. Nix didn’t want to give Puig access to the websites until his debt was paid.
After Puig paid the $200,000 Nix allowed Puig access to the betting websites. Between July 4, 2019 to Sept. 29, 2019, Puig made 899 additional bets on tennis, football and basketball games (not baseball), sometimes making the bets at MLB ballparks before and after games. During that period he ran up nearly $1 million in gambling debt, which he never paid.
Maximum 10 Years in Prison
Puig was with the Dodgers for six of his seven years in MLB. He also played for the Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians in 2019. Over his career, Puig hit .277, with 132 HRs, 415 RBIs, with an .823 OPS over 861 games. He later signed with professional teams in Mexico, South Korea, Venezuela, and the Dominican Republic.
Prosecutors detailed how Puig in March 2022 sent a Nix associate an audio message via WhatsApp where he admitted lying to federal agents and to obstructing their grand jury investigation during his interview two months earlier.
Nix pleaded guilty in April 2022 to one count of conspiracy to operate an illegal sports betting business and will be sentenced over the next few months. Puig remains free on his own recognizance, but will have to appear at a scheduled May 26 hearing where he is facing maximum sentence of ten years in federal prison on the obstruction charge and up to five years for the false statement charge.
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