Athletes tied to Iowa gambling sting seek damages in civil lawsuit against state and investigators

Attorneys for more than two dozen Iowa and Iowa State athletes who were ensnared in a state gambling sting filed a civil lawsuit Friday seeking unspecified monetary damages from the state and its public safety and criminal investigation agencies for violating the athletes’ rights and smearing their reputations.

The lawsuit was filed in federal court in Des Moines and names as plaintiffs 17 athletes from Iowa, eight from Iowa State and one from Ellsworth Community College. They request a jury trial.

Most of the athletes who faced criminal charges connected to the 2023 investigation agreed to plead guilty to underage gambling and pay a fine and in return had a count of identity theft dismissed.

But Iowa State football players Isaiah Lee, Jirehl Brock and Enyi Uwazurike and wrestler Paniro Johnson did not accept plea deals and in March had all charges against them dropped because the Division of Criminal Investigation was found to have misused tracking software that detected open mobile betting apps on cell phones in ISU athletic facilities.