Former LSU Football Player Accused of Nearly 9K Illegal Sports Bets

Posted on: January 25, 2024, 03:57h. 

Last updated on: January 26, 2024, 11:25h.

Devin O'Connor @CasinoorgDevinO Read More
Expertise: Asia Pacific Gaming, Commercial Gaming, Legislation, Politics.

A former LSU football player who was drafted by the New England Patriots last year is facing a myriad of trouble for allegedly placing more than 8,900 illegal sports bets while he was still in school.

LSU football sports betting Kayshon Boutte
Kayshon Boutte poses for his junior season photograph. Boutte is facing a felony charge for allegedly placing illegal sports bets while he was underage and playing college football. (Image: LSU Tigers)

This morning, Kayshon Boutte, 21, surrendered to Louisiana State Police after a warrant for his arrest was issued by the 19th Judicial District Court in the East Baton Rouge Parish.

Prosecutors allege that Boutte unlawfully opened and managed a FanDuel sports betting account while he was a student-athlete at LSU and playing football for the Tigers.

Boutte has been charged with a felony count of computer fraud and a misdemeanor charge for gambling while underage. He was released after posting a $6,000 bond. The computer fraud charge carries a possible penalty of up to five years in prison and a $10K fine.

Affidavit Details

An internal investigation conducted by FanDuel determined that Boutte used his girlfriend Kayla Fortenberry’s personal information to establish an online sports betting account on April 5, 2002. Boutte wasn’t 21 at the time — the legal age in Louisiana to participate in sports betting — but Fortenberry was.

FanDuel says the account in question was extremely active and made approximately 8,927 wagers from April 6, 2022, through May 17, 2023. At least 17 bets were on NCAA football, including wagers on LSU games.

There’s no evidence that Boutte bet against LSU or threw games. But he did allegedly bet on himself through player props and parlays. Such bets include whether a specific player will score a touchdown or receive a certain number of yards.

After the Louisiana State Police’s Gaming Enforcement Division, Sports Wagering Unit, was tipped off about the possible illicit account by FanDuel, state investigators gained warrants to look into the banking records surrounding the account.

The Fortenberry account was exclusively funded by a Visa card that state investigators linked to Boutte’s mother, Tanisha Boutte. Police followed the money and found that a Visa card belonging to Kayshon made 287 transfers to the Visa controlled by Tanisha during the period.

Information provided by FanDuel Sportsbook shows that in 2022, $100,939 was deposited to the ‘Fortenberry’ account. In 2022, $450,969.44 was wagered from that account, with $385,597.71 won,” the affidavit detailed.

FanDuel said another $31,208.53 was deposited to the “Fortenberry” account in 2023. Nearly 1,500 wagers ended up winning $170,675.87.

The book seemingly won back most of those losses through further bets. The affidavit says the account had a balance of $0.67 at the end of the year, despite there only being $50,282.36 in withdrawals made during the two-year time frame.

Massachusetts Betting Account

Boutte enjoyed a successful playing career at LSU. He played in 27 games, started 21, and finished his three-season career with 131 receptions, 1,782 receiving yards, and 16 touchdowns.

Boutte skipped his senior year and entered the 2023 NFL Draft, where he was selected in the sixth round — the 187th overall pick — by the Patriots. Soon after relocating to Massachusetts, FanDuel says Boutte got back to his illicit sports betting ways.

FanDuel compliance officers say an online wagering account opened in Massachusetts on June 7, 2023, was registered to Kayshon Boutte. Boutte turned 21 on May 7, 2023. The Visa card that funded the Massachusetts account was the same account that linked to Tanisha.

State prosecutors in Louisiana say court orders that resulted in the disclosure of IP addresses and geolocation data on the Louisiana FanDuel account revealed that Boutte was the only person gambling on the account. The bets were linked back to Boutte’s iPhone 13 Pro Max and a wireless IP address provided by Cox Communications that the company said was subscribed to an address where Boutte lived.

The investigation found Boutte to have bet on several LSU games in which he played, including the Tigers’ game against Florida State that was played in the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans on Sept. 4, 2022.