Iowa men’s basketball student manager Evan Schuster pleads not guilty in sports betting charges

Schuster had been charged with tampering with records but pleaded not guilty on Oct. 2.

October 9, 2023

Iowa guard Ahron Ulis brings the ball up the floor during a men’s basketball game between Iowa and North Carolina A&T at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City on Friday, Nov. 11, 2022. Ulis scored six points in the game. The Hawkeyes defeated the Aggies, 112-71.

Iowa men’s basketball student manager Evan Schuster, who was charged with tampering with records related to the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation’s probe into sports gambling, pleaded not guilty on Oct. 2.

In a court filing, Schuster pleaded not guilty to his charge, and in the same filing waived his right to a speedy trial. No trial date has been set, but a separate filing from Oct. 2 set a case management hearing for Schuster on Nov. 27.

Schuster is one of nine individuals who was charged with tampering with records, including Iowa football graduate assistant Owen O’Brien, and former athletes Aaron Blom and Gehrig Christensen.

According to court documents, Schuster placed over 2,000 bets on FanDuel with an account under his father’s name totaling $15,800. Most of the alleged bets were placed while Schuster was still under the age of 21, the legal age to gamble in the state of Iowa. He allegedly placed bets on his own team’s games.

According to NCAA rules, athletes or employees of teams face punishment up to and including the permanent loss of eligibility.

Others involved in the investigation elected to plead guilty to their charges, as is the case of Blom and Christensen, who both pleaded guilty on Sept. 5.

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Alejandro Rojas, News Editor

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Alejandro Rojas is The Daily Iowan's news editor. He previously worked as a news reporter covering Johnson County and was the summer executive editor in 2023. He is a senior, double majoring in journalism and political science.

Jerod Ringwald, Creative Director

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Jerod Ringwald is the Creative Director at The Daily Iowan. He is a senior at the University of Iowa majoring in journalism and cinema. He was previously a managing editor this past summer as well as a former photo editor. During his sophomore year, he worked as a photojournalist covering news and sports.