How the Iowa gambling investigation ….

[sober_teacher]

I did. I can claim he used a unicorn.
If a law enforcement officer googles someone is that a illegal search?
Uber used geofences. Can I sue them?

Judges have a very mixed history regarding what is and isn't a legal search. One reason I tend to disbelieve police accounts in public events.

I’m not trying to defend this Brian Sanger turd, but I find it unlikely he or someone else just went rogue. He, or someone else, was requesting access to geo location software linked to online sportsbooks the gaming commission was already using according to this article.

After apparently receiving the access, it’s deployed with a geofence around a dorm at the UI. I’m not familiar with how the DCI conducts operations, but it’s pretty hard to believe he’s progressed this far without any input, help, or consultation. And even though Sanger’s supervisor and the Assistant DCI Director put the brakes on the initial investigation of the dorms, they didn’t shut the whole thing down or he wouldn’t have been able to monitor the athletic facilities. There has to be more to the genesis of this investigation.

I don't doubt that someone at DCI wanted to make an example of underage gambling at colleges; didn't find what they were looking for in the dorms so they targeted athletes instead. I think this only scratches the surface.

 

[obfuscating]

Should sue the shite out of them, if able...

 

[uihawk82]

I hope Noah Shannon wins a bundle, and also goes after the NCAA, and that U of I goes after both the state DCI and NCAA.

Well IA Gov Dimmy and her statehouse gang are always touting their vast vault of $2 billion surplus so I guess they have the money if they get sued and lose.

 

[Chuck C]

Why in the hell is the state wasting time and resources like this to try and potentially catch some underage students gambling? It’s not like the majority of college students have a ton of extra money to make massive bets. Why is this even on the DCI’s radar? Shouldn’t they have bigger priorities to deal with, and if not their funding obviously needs to be cut.

 

[pistachio1999]

Dude needs his ass whipped

How about fired and stripped of any and all benefits.

 

[bunsen82]

There is obviously enough smoke here and the fact that he has taken down his LinkedIn page that this was most likely an illegal search that they are tryin pg to circle the wagons and do damage control, I think the damage is done. You need to show a warrant for the geofence and there was none. This investigator had a beef with Iowa obviously and blew this up even after being told to stop. I think there is even more to this and this is just the tip of the iceberg.

 

[sober_teacher]

Why in the hell is the state wasting time and resources like this to try and potentially catch some underage students gambling? It’s not like the majority of college students have a ton of extra money to make massive bets. Why is this even on the DCI’s radar? Shouldn’t they have bigger priorities to deal with, and if not their funding obviously needs to be cut.

10-1 (pun intended), there's someone who remains opposed to the expansion of gambling in the state, who has pushed this behind the scenes.

 

[bunsen82]

10-1 (pun intended), there's someone who remains opposed to the expansion of gambling in the state, who has pushed this behind the scenes.

Care to name names?

 

[sober_teacher]

Care to name names?

How would I know? This has smelled from the start like it was a targeted investigation. They're concerned about underage gambling - why did they only look at Iowa and ISU? Why not UNI, Drake, or any of the other private schools in the state?

 

[Jimmy McGill]

IMHO the State is going to lose their ass over this.

Van isn't a lightweight.

 

[bunsen82]

They targeted specific schools, along with illegal seizures this is not going to end well.

 

[LetsGoHawks83]

As many have already posted, what a damn waste of resources. Way to take down all these criminals for placing a few low dollar bets. Did they think they were going to discover some gambling ring that was fixing games?

Oh that's right, he went after the biggest schools hoping to catch some athletes and make a splash.

I feel so much safer, with this type of criminal investigating going on. Taking down those criminals that are ruining our communities .

Families can sleep well this this great work going being done... LOL

 

[LetsGoHawks83]

They targeted specific schools, along with illegal seizures this is not going to end well.

This. Geo-fencing with no reason other than playing the percentages and figuring that some kids are gambling. They could see account numbers too, right? That sh*t ain't right. Hope this guy and the DCI are taken to task over this sh*t.

 

[pistachio1999]

How would I know? This has smelled from the start like it was a targeted investigation. They're concerned about underage gambling - why did they only look at Iowa and ISU? Why not UNI, Drake, or any of the other private schools in the state?

Basically a Barney with a gun.

 

[fecal particulate]

Judges have a very mixed history regarding what is and isn't a legal search. One reason I tend to disbelieve police accounts in public events.


I don't doubt that someone at DCI wanted to make an example of underage gambling at colleges; didn't find what they were looking for in the dorms so they targeted athletes instead. I think this only scratches the surface.

I find it interesting the investigation into the dorms was stopped but not the investigation into the athletes. If the dorm portion continued, there could have been thousands of average college students at Iowa and ISU (plus UNI, Drake, and any number of Iowa colleges) involved in a gambling investigation, and can you imagine the uproar surrounding those students and especially their parents. That’s why it never happened.

At this point, what the average students and student-athletes were doing was pretty much the same. But the DCI viewed the smaller subset of “entitled” student-athletes as a better target which is why that investigation continued. Except, as of the current info, there never appeared to be any evidence of match fixing or inside information as Brian Sanger was concerned about in his deposition. The DCI just tried to cast a wide net and work backwards from that rather than start with any concrete evidence or complaints.

 

[sober_teacher]

I find it interesting the investigation into the dorms was stopped but not the investigation into the athletes. If the dorm portion continued, there could have been thousands of average college students at Iowa and ISU (plus UNI, Drake, and any number of Iowa colleges) involved in a gambling investigation, and can you imagine the uproar surrounding those students and especially their parents. That’s why it never happened.

At this point, what the average students and student-athletes were doing was pretty much the same. But the DCI viewed the smaller subset of “entitled” student-athletes as a better target which is why that investigation continued. Except, as of the current info, there never appeared to be any evidence of match fixing or inside information as Brian Sanger was concerned about in his deposition. The DCI just tried to cast a wide net and work backwards from that rather than start with any concrete evidence or complaints.

Yup they certainly seemed to start with the assumption of a crime vs starting with evidence that one occurred.

 

[Gus is dead]

Yup they certainly seemed to start with the assumption of a crime vs starting with evidence that one occurred.

That sounds familiar.

 

[hawkeyebob62]

Why in the hell is the state wasting time and resources like this to try and potentially catch some underage students gambling? It’s not like the majority of college students have a ton of extra money to make massive bets. Why is this even on the DCI’s radar? Shouldn’t they have bigger priorities to deal with, and if not their funding obviously needs to be eliminated.

FIFY

 

[TheGuy9]

While it sucks that the investigation was in all likelihood illegal and unconstitutional, many people seem to believe the state and investigators are at fault from what I've read on this board. Unfortunately, that's not true. The fault lies with those who knowing broke the rules. We know this because many of them were not using their own accounts but those of family members. By the way. What parent encourages their kid to gamble and then provides with an account to do so because they are underage or trying to hide it. The athletes and the parents are at fault. They were the ones gambling or enabling it.
If the investigation was legal, is a separate issue.

 

[anon_b29nm7v7dwp6r]

Wow, this is unreal. Need to sue the DCI big time….and find out what/if Bird was involved…

 

[StormHawk42]

While it sucks that the investigation was in all likelihood illegal and unconstitutional, many people seem to believe the state and investigators are at fault from what I've read on this board. Unfortunately, that's not true. The fault lies with those who knowing broke the rules. We know this because many of them were not using their own accounts but those of family members. By the way. What parent encourages their kid to gamble and then provides with an account to do so because they are underage or trying to hide it. The athletes and the parents are at fault. They were the ones gambling or enabling it.
If the investigation was legal, is a separate issue.

For NCAA violations, you’re kinda right but on the criminal side, you’re way off base (if there’s truth to this report). You can’t selectively conduct search and surveillance without following procedure. The players still have rights even if they were technically committing a crime.

 

[Hawk_4shur]

 

[NorthernHawkeye]

Wow, this is unreal. Need to sue the DCI big time….and find out what/if Bird was involved…

Wel, it would first have to be established that the actions by the DCI were unlawful.

And I'm not sure why people keep bringing up Bird. It was Johnson and Story County.

 

[ANYCHawk]

Why in the hell is the state wasting time and resources like this to try and potentially catch some underage students gambling? It’s not like the majority of college students have a ton of extra money to make massive bets. Why is this even on the DCI’s radar? Shouldn’t they have bigger priorities to deal with, and if not their funding obviously needs to be cut.

sigh

People can do more than one thing at a time.

 

[ANYCHawk]

Wel, it would first have to be established that the actions by the DCI were unlawful.

And I'm not sure why people keep bringing up Bird. It was Johnson and Story County.

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.


For being so well read, you aren't that bright.

 

[anon_b29nm7v7dwp6r]

Wel, it would first have to be established that the actions by the DCI were unlawful.

And I'm not sure why people keep bringing up Bird. It was Johnson and Story County.

Well, it sounds an awful lot like at least the dorms were a warrantless search and potentially the whole thing.

If that’s the case you would THINK that the AG would need to sign off on an Iowa DCI investigation like that….

 

[hawkirugged17]

Basically a Barney with a gun.

 

[NorthernHawkeye]

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.


For being so well read, you aren't that bright.

I prefer to let the judiciary make the ruling on the lawfulness of their actions, not some random internet dude named ANYCHawk.

 

[NorthernHawkeye]

Well, it sounds an awful lot like at least the dorms were a warrantless search and potentially the whole thing.

If that’s the case you would THINK that the AG would need to sign off on an Iowa DCI investigation like that….

Well, thus far you only have one side of the story.

Not sure why you think Bird would have to sign off. She's not the head of the DCI.

 

[St. Louis Hawk]

While it sucks that the investigation was in all likelihood illegal and unconstitutional, many people seem to believe the state and investigators are at fault from what I've read on this board. Unfortunately, that's not true.

It doesn’t “suck” if the investigation was unconstitutional. If so, it would be illegal and the state and investigators would be at fault. This is not hard.

 

[bunsen82]

Well, it sounds an awful lot like at least the dorms were a warrantless search and potentially the whole thing.

If that’s the case you would THINK that the AG would need to sign off on an Iowa DCI investigation like that….

The dorms and the athletic facility were warrantless. Once they had info then they got the proper warrants. I saw someone say we should not feel bad for the kids they were doing something illegal. Fine they were the kids who got caught, the bigger issue is why were these kids targeted vs every other college age kid in the US. Were they doing something substantially worse? Were they gambling bigger dollars? Was there a massive gambling scheme to alter scores or lines? The answer is no. You had an agent who felt he was going to make an example of some kids but had no idea who they were. So he used a new toy, to effectively tap into every persons electronic devices of the size of many of our small towns without anyone else's knowledge and without a warrant. What do you think cops would find if they did that to every small community in Iowa? 1. They would find a lot of crimes. 2. They would have violated so many statutes in the process.

 

[hawkedoff]

While it sucks that the investigation was in all likelihood illegal and unconstitutional, many people seem to believe the state and investigators are at fault from what I've read on this board. Unfortunately, that's not true. The fault lies with those who knowing broke the rules. We know this because many of them were not using their own accounts but those of family members. By the way. What parent encourages their kid to gamble and then provides with an account to do so because they are underage or trying to hide it. The athletes and the parents are at fault. They were the ones gambling or enabling it.
If the investigation was legal, is a separate issue.

It is interesting how concerned you are about following the rules but don't follow that standard for the people that are supposed to follow the rules the most. The people with the ability to fine, jaile, and kill you are the ones who the rules apply to to the most. In fact under our constitution the rules basically are that anything not specifically detailed as a rule for the government is a right of the people. The constitution and bill of rights is the limiting factor on a tyrannical government and its enforcement arm. Let.me clue you in on a very silly truth.....all governments are tyrannical especially if you allow them to be

 

[hawkedoff]

Geofencing even with a warrant is unconstitutional in most cases.

First Appellate Court Finds Geofence Warrant Unconstitutional

The California Court of Appeal has held that a geofence warrant seeking information on all devices located within several densely-populated areas in Los Angeles violated the Fourth Amendment. This is the first time an appellate court in the United States has reviewed a geofence warrant. The case...

www.eff.org

 

[bunsen82]

Well, thus far you only have one side of the story.

Not sure why you think Bird would have to sign off. She's not the head of the DCI.

If they show warrants for the dorm and athletic facilities that should clear it all up. However they have already admitted they didn't have one, and that the agent was worried about match fixing . . . ok, but you know where he started - the dorms. Seems a stupid place to start. He wanted to nail all underage gamblers. The issue is he was told to shove off. So then he continued on the athletic facility. There he found enough evidence to convince some superiors to get warrants. Sanger is in self preservation mode at this point. Unless the DCI can show they had specific complaints or reasons for the investigations, this looks extremely bad on the part of DCI.

 

[NorthernHawkeye]

If they show warrants for the dorm and athletic facilities that should clear it all up. However they have already admitted they didn't have one, and that the agent was worried about match fixing . . . ok, but you know where he started - the dorms. Seems a stupid place to start. He wanted to nail all underage gamblers. The issue is he was told to shove off. So then he continued on the athletic facility. There he found enough evidence to convince some superiors to get warrants. Sanger is in self preservation mode at this point. Unless the DCI can show they had specific complaints or reasons for the investigations, this looks extremely bad on the part of DCI.

Well, this is why it's important to wait to see what the other side says and to let the courts make the determination.

 

[bunsen82]

Well, this is why it's important to wait to see what the other side says and to let the courts make the determination.

So his testimony isn't factual?

 

[ICWestfan]

It doesn’t “suck” if the investigation was unconstitutional. If so, it would be illegal and the state and investigators would be at fault. This is not hard.

It appears that this is indeed a case of a "rogue" agent. Fom SI, the Alabama coach who was providing info to a gambler who tried to place a $100K bet after the Bama coach told him he was sitting his best pitcher vs LSU.
https://www.si.com/college/2023/07/10/inside-the-alabama-baseball-gambling-scandal

A week later, Iowa and ISU announce investigations.
https://apnews.com/article/iowa-alabama-gambling-ncaa-investigation-59d44b208ba35f6a0b25e14119b55bb3

It's not really hard to put 2 and 2 together.

 

[NorthernHawkeye]

So his testimony isn't factual?

Have you read the full deposition? Have you read anything from the state as to their position?

Or are you just content with one side?

 

[sober_teacher]

The dorms and the athletic facility were warrantless. Once they had info then they got the proper warrants. I saw someone say we should not feel bad for the kids they were doing something illegal. Fine they were the kids who got caught, the bigger issue is why were these kids targeted vs every other college age kid in the US. Were they doing something substantially worse? Were they gambling bigger dollars? Was there a massive gambling scheme to alter scores or lines? The answer is no. You had an agent who felt he was going to make an example of some kids but had no idea who they were. So he used a new toy, to effectively tap into every persons electronic devices of the size of many of our small towns without anyone else's knowledge and without a warrant. What do you think cops would find if they did that to every small community in Iowa? 1. They would find a lot of crimes. 2. They would have violated so many statutes in the process.

If nothing else, it’s fair to ask why only ISU and Iowa were targets as well here.

 

[ozzie8]

Have you read the full deposition? Have you read anything from the state as to their position?

Or are you just content with one side?

We wont hear from the state. They keep saying its an ongoing investigation. My opinion is the state knows they royally ****ed up. Thats why you saw the plea agreements be forced upon these athletes with crap added into them that had nothing to do with the case. You also saw charges dropped because the state couldnt make the deadline.

Those plea agreements were low hanging fruit for the state as most of these kids just wanted this behind them, but were hesitant to sign because of the extra crap included. Good thing Hanika and Lee for Iowa State didnt sign or none of this would have come out.