David Purdum, ESPN
Ohio gambling regulators on Monday instructed the state’s licensed sportsbooks to halt betting on college baseball games involving Alabama after suspicious wagering activity was detected on the Crimson Tide’s game against top-ranked LSU on Friday.
The directive, issued by Ohio Casino Control Commission executive director Matthew T. Schuler and obtained by ESPN, prohibits “the acceptance of any wagers on University of Alabama baseball effective immediately.”
Schuler wrote that the emergency order was in response to a report from an independent integrity monitor. On Friday, U.S. Integrity, a Las Vegas-based firm that monitors the betting markets, issued an alert to its sportsbook clients regarding “suspicious wagering activity” involving the Alabama-LSU game.
The Louisiana Gaming Control Board told NOLA.com that two specific bets — both made in Cincinnati, Ohio — triggered the suspicious activity alert. “One was on a parlay which involved the LSU-Alabama game, and then there was another straight-up (money line) bet,” said Ronnie Johns, chairman of the board. “I was told it was a large bet that involved LSU-Alabama.”
Because there is no national gaming regulator, a halt on wagering typically happens on a state-by-state basis.
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