Report: Donaghy made 134 calls to fellow referee

[July 15, 2008]  NEW YORK (AP) -- Former NBA referee Tim Donaghy made more than 100 phone calls to a fellow official at the same time he was providing information to gamblers during the 2006-07 season, Fox News reported Monday.

Citing court documents and phone records it obtained, Fox reported Donaghy placed 134 calls to referee Scott Foster between October 2006 and April 2007, the period during which he has confessed to betting on games or passing on game information to gamblers.

It's not known what information was exchanged during the calls between Foster and Donaghy, who is awaiting sentencing later this month in federal court.

The 41-year-old Donaghy pleaded guilty last year to felony charges of taking cash payoffs from gamblers in the 2006-07 season. He faces up to 33 months in prison.

NBA commissioner David Stern has called Donaghy a "rogue, isolated criminal" acting on his own, without the cooperation of any other referees or league officials.

"The government had complete access to Tim Donaghy's phone records and thoroughly investigated this matter, including conducting an interview of referee Scott Foster," the NBA said in a statement. "The government has said that they have found no evidence of criminal conduct aside from that of Mr. Donaghy. Once again, the only criminal conduct is that of Mr. Donaghy."

According to a story published Monday on Fox News' Web site, the majority of the phone calls lasted no more than two minutes and occurred before and after games Donaghy officiated and on which he admits wagering.

Reached for comment by Fox, Foster was asked if he was being investigated by the NBA, the government or anyone else.

"Not that I know of," he said.

He declined to comment on his relationship with Donaghy and the nature of the calls.

The only person Donaghy called more often (150 times) was Thomas Martino, to whom Donaghy has said he provided picks to win games and who was the middleman between the former ref and a bookie named James Battista. During this period, the most calls Donaghy made to any other referee were 13, Fox said.

Battista and Martino, who pleaded guilty to defrauding the NBA, are to be sentenced on July 24.

[Associated Press]

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