Statements from a slew of overseas betting agencies will form part of the case against a former A-League captain and midfielders who are accused of a scheme to rig yellow cards.
Ex-Macarthur team leader Ulises Davila and midfielders Kearyn Baccus and Clayton Lewis all faced Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court on Thursday over the alleged bet-fixing scheme.
Davila, a Chelsea academy graduate and Mexico youth international, allegedly acted as the conduit between the southwest Sydney team’s players and an unnamed criminal group in Colombia. He allegedly paid Baccus and Lewis up to $10,000 to deliberately receive yellow cards through an illegal bet-fixing scheme.
Davila’s solicitor Kiki Kyriacou told Downing Centre Local Court on Thursday prosecutors had still not served the full brief of evidence on his client. This included gaming-machine records and bookmaker statements from BetPlay Colombia, Bet365 New Jersey and Bet365 Bulgaria, the court was told. Baccus’s lawyer Rose Cetin added that transcripts of audio calls and a statement from the officer in charge of the investigation were also outstanding.
Both matters have been adjourned until Oct. 17.
Lewis, who is fighting the charges, and his lawyer Zemarai Khatiz appeared in a separate court at the complex, which was told police had served the soccer player with 2500 pages of evidence. His case has been put over to Sept. 12.
Police say the betting scheme led to hundreds of thousands of dollars being paid out in winnings and was headed by the Colombian contact. Investigators allege yellow cards, which are universally issued as cautions by referees for foul play, were manipulated during games played on Nov. 24, a 1-1 draw with Melbourne Victory. and Dec. 9, a 2-0 win over Sydney FC. All three charged players were booked in the game against Sydney.
Police also allege unsuccessful attempts were made to do the same thing during matches on April 20 and May 4.
Macarthur terminated the contract of captain Davila on the same day the midfielder fronted court for the first time over allegations in June, while Baccus was released by the Bulls during their 2024 offseason clean-out.
