Former KSU football players Jai’len Edwards and Akebren Ralls were kicked off the team following their arrests, after being caught running an illegal gambling operation in which victims would place bets on NBA 2K18 games.
That’s just the beginning of this crazy tale of armed robbery and illegal gambling.
Via the Atlanta Journal Constitution:
It was supposed to be a friendly wager over a game of NBA 2K18.
Instead, what transpired was an armed robbery at an illegal gambling house operated out of a Kennesaw State University football player’s on-campus apartment.
After a week-long investigation, authorities arrested two more people — Justin “Pimp Juice” Mosley and Issiah “Swipe” Hightower — on armed robbery charges Friday. The arrests came a day after former KSU football players Jai’len Edwards and Akebren Ralls were kicked off the team following their arrests.
Mosley and Hightower are not affiliated with the school, spokeswoman Tammy Demel said. Hightower was booked into the Fulton County jail on outstanding traffic warrants.
All four men remain in jail without bond in the April 13 incident, in which Ralls is accused of running an illegal gambling house. Warrants allege Ralls arranged for the victims to place bets on who would win the basketball video game.
Authorities went to Ralls’ Marietta Drive apartment, where victims told them they were “hanging out” and playing the video game when two men — identified as Hightower and Mosley — carrying Draco .233 caliber semi-automatic pistols were let in by Edwards, according to arrest warrants.
The men ordered the victims to get naked, give them their money and get on the ground, according to a Kennesaw State Police report.
One of the victims attempted to hide his money, but police said Edwards saw the man and told him “that ain’t happening,” ordered him to give up the money and demanded the victim’s shoes, a pair of blue and white Air Jordan Retros.
Witnesses told police Edwards acted as a lookout for Hightower and Mosley. The three took $3,700, an iPhone7 plus and a wallet containing someone’s Social Security card before leaving in a red Chevrolet Camaro, according to the warrants.
Ralls, who was sleep in the apartment until he heard commotion, later confronted Edwards about the incident, but he “brushed it off and thought it was a joke,” according to the police report.
When questioned by police, Edwards said he was wearing a brace following knee surgery and was on the couch since he couldn’t move. He also told police he gave Hightower and Mosley $30, asked if he could leave with them and they let him go.
Police were able to nab Hightower and Mosley after a ping on Hightower’s phone led them to his Atlanta apartment, according to arrest warrants. Authorities identified Mosley after Hightower told them his real name.
Who the hell is betting on people playing NBA2K? I mean, talk about a lame way to get a fix. Not to mention the outcome can so easily be manipulated. Strange days we live in.
