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5 months ago
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Two more A-League players have been named as participants in an alleged bet-fixing scheme involving their Macarthur FC teammates, according to court documents.
Matthew Millar and Jed Drew have been accused of participating in a criminal group that also allegedly involved three charged players, club captain Ulises Davila and teammates Clayton Lewis and Kearyn Baccus.
Their identities were revealed in court documents on Thursday as midfielder Baccus, 32, became the first of the trio to face court over the alleged plot to receive yellow cards in return for payment.
Macarthur FC star Kearyn Baccus (right) is pictured outside a Sydney court on Thursday after he was charged with corrupting a betting outcome
Baccus's A-League teammate Matthew Millar (pictured) was also accused of being part of the scheme to corrupt betting by getting yellow cards on purpose during matches
Macarthur's Jed Drew (pictured) was also named as one of the accused players in a sensational move in court on Thursday
Neither Millar nor Drew have been charged, however police previously said they were looking for another Macarthur player who was not in NSW at the time of the mid-May arrests.
Davila, 33, was arrested and charged after allegedly paying Baccus and Lewis, 27, to deliberately receive yellow cards in a scheme NSW police said led to hundreds of thousands of dollars being paid out in winnings.
All three are on bail.
Police on Thursday said their investigations into the alleged bet-fixing syndicate continued.
Macarthur FC has been contacted for comment.
Clayton Lewis (left) of Macarthur is yet to face court after also being charged over the alleged offences
Macarthur skipper Ulises Davila (pictured) is accused of playing a part in manipulating the awarding of yellow cards in games on November 24 and December 9 last year
Baccus appeared at Campbelltown Local Court on Thursday but did not speak during the brief mention and did not indicate how he would plead when questioned outside court.
His lawyer Bryan Wrench told the court the competitive nature of A-League matches should be taken into account when considering the case.
'It was circumstances where he was a highly competitive, aggressive player,' he said.
Baccus's case was adjourned until June 24, when he is due to appear at Downing Centre Local Court alongside Davila.
A 'responsible gambling' ad featuring Baccus (pictured) was pulled after he was charged
Investigators allege yellow cards, which are universally issued as cautions by referees for foul play, were manipulated during games played on November 24 and December 9.
Macarthur played out a 1-1 draw with Melbourne Victory on November 24 before beating Sydney FC 2-0 on December 9.
All three accused players were booked in the December 9 game against Sydney.
Investigators also allege unsuccessful attempts were made to do the same thing during matches on April 20 and May 4.
Football Australia subsequently stood down the trio, hitting them with no-fault interim suspension notices under their code of conduct.
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