WCS
Sources: (Official investigation report, Kookje.co.kr)
The Changwon Regional Prosecutor's office announced the apprehension of twelve individuals in connection with match-fixing and illegal betting in StarCraft 2, including PRIME head coach
Gerrard (Park Wae-Sik) and progamers 
YoDa (Choi Byeong-Heon) and BBoongBBoong (Choi Jong-Hyuk). No other progamers or coaching staff have been implicated.Brokers and "financial backers" were also arrested, including former progamer and esports journalist Enough (Seong Jun-mo) who acted as a broker. The two financial backers—who paid brokers to attempt to fix matches—were gangsters with ties to organized crime.
A total of five professional StarCraft 2 matches were found to have been fixed according to the investigation. Four were played by YoDa, and one was played by BBoongBBoong. The matches took place in GSL and Proleague matches between January and June of this year.
PRIME head coach Gerrard is charged for acting as a middleman between the brokers and the players. The first match with manipulated results is alleged to have occurred in January. Gerrard is said to have passed along 5,000,000 Korean won ($4,450 all figures are approximate) from an unnamed broker to BBoongBBoong, in exchange for arranging to have BBoongBBoong lose his Proleague match. Gerrard then went on to connect YoDa with brokers as well, and also helped transfer funds to YoDa on one occasion. Additionally, Gerrard is charged with spending over 57,000,000 KRW on illegal internet gambling (gambling is strictly regulated in Korea).
YoDa is charged with manipulating the results of four matches he played in. The matches were played in a variety of tournaments including Proleague, GSL Code A, and GSL Code S. YoDa dealt with the brokers directly on some occasions, and went through Gerrard on others. While YoDa received a total of 30,000,000 KRW for intentionally losing two matches, he was also blackmailed into fixing two other matches with no compensation.
The official investigation did not disclose full details on the matches. However, TeamLiquid users have been able to determine or narrow down the range of suspicious matches based on the given information:
List of fixed matches, based on information from the official investigation
Yoda:
2015 Proleague
• 06-09 match against HerO
2015 Season 1 GSL
• 02-13 - Code S Ro16 vs Life OR TY (Gerrard named as middleman)
2015 Season 2 GSL:
• 04-01 - Code A Ro48 vs DRG
• 05-13 - Code S Ro32 vs Bbyong (Gerrard named as middleman)
BBoongBBoong:
2015 Proleague:
• 01-20 match against Flash (Gerrard named as middleman)
VODS
YoDa - 4 match days
SPL 2015 - June 9 match against HerO
Code S Ro16 Season 1 - February 13 against Life
Code S Ro16 Season 1 - February 13 against TY
Code A Ro48 Season 2 - April 1 against DRG
Code A Ro48 Season 2 - April 1 against DRG
Code S Ro32 Season 2 - May 13 against Bbyong
Code S Ro32 Season 2 - May 13 against Symbol
BboongBboong - 1 match
SPL 2015 - January 20 against Flash
The brokers approached PRIME in different ways. Some posed as sponsors and earned Gerrard's trust by providing the team with operating funds before broaching the topic of match-fixing. In the case of Enough, the only broker specifically named by Korean media, he used his web of connections stemming from his career as a progamer, journalist, and broadcast host to approach Gerrard and YoDa.
The financial backers behind the match-fixing schemes sought to make money in different ways. The unnamed Mr. "H" paid brokers to approach progamers and arrange fixed matches. Mr. "H" then bet directly on those matches through illegal websites. Over the course of two matches, Mr. "H" bet approximately 31,500,000 KRW and received winnings of approximately 41,500,000 KRW.
On the other hand, unnamed financial backer Mr. "I" failed to fix any matches, as his broker was unable to find any takers. This did not stop the broker from feeding Mr. "I" bogus information on fixed matches. Nor did it stop Mr. "I" from running a gambling ring, where he charged commission fees to over fifty members in exchange for fraudulent information on fixed matches.
Gerrard reported to have been in financial trouble from running Prime team
Source: Fomos
Esports outlet Fomos speculated that financial difficulties led Gerrard to resort to such extreme measures, reporting that the head coach was in considerable debt and had reached out to friends and family for funds.
Former Prime players: "We had our pay withheld"
Source: Inven
Inven has learned from anonymous ex-Prime team players that the team withheld salaries from its players. According to one player, they were promised regular salaries after a new sponsor was found, but payments stopped after around four months.
KeSPA: Gerrard, YoDa, and BBoongBBoong banned for life
Sources: KeSPA press release (Oct 19, Oct 20)
In response to the match-fixing, KeSPA announced they would ban Gerrard, YoDa, and BBoongBBoong for life. According to KeSPA, they had been tipped off to Gerrard and YoDa's match-fixing and had been holding their own investigation before becoming aware of the criminal investigation taking place. KeSPA also said they would file civil suits for damages against the match-fixers, in addition to the criminal charges already being brought against them.
Full KeSPA statement, October 19th:
Hello, this is director Cho Man Soo of the Korean e-Sports Association.
The association opened a disciplinary hearing today. We plan to ban Gerrard (Prime head coach) and YoDa for life and permanently suspend their licenses.
Since 2010, the association has worked alongside the rest of the industry to fight against the illegal betting that has continued to threaten the foundation of e-Sports. It is extremely regrettable that a related incident has occurred again, and we apologize to all of the fans who have shown e-Sports their love and support.
This is the association's understanding of the situation:
Toward the end September, we confirmed that PRIME's Gerrard and YoDa had been arrested and incarcerated by public prosecutors on charges related to illegal betting and match-fixing.
The case is currently under investigation, and as such we expect details to be released at a later time by the Prosecutor's office. The association will actively cooperate in the investigation, and if any others are found to be involved in the case, they will be banned for life regardless of the result of a trial. Depending on the circumstances, the association may sue for damages and/or file charges on grounds of obstruction.
Since 2013, the association has enacted regular anti-corruption education for all head coaches, coaches, and players competing in Proleague. The association also received agreements from coaching staff and players that they could be subject to measures under civil and/or criminal law should they be involved in illegal betting. Furthermore, starting in 2014, we started a program reward those who reported or confessed to illicit activities, and signed an MOU (memorandum of understanding) with the police department's Cyber Bureau, the Korea Communications Standards Commission, and the Korea Internet Self-governance Organization for a clean e-Sports environment.
The association independently learned that Gerrard and YoDa were involved illegal betting from an anonymous source seeking a reward. While investigating the case internally, we learned that the Prosecutor's office had made arrests and were holding an investigation, and we have been receiving legal advice since then.
The association will pursue strong legal measures based on recent reports, and will be utterly uncompromising should investigators find any hint of connection. Going forward, the association's stance toward illegal betting will continue to be one of zero-compromise, and we will continue to respond strongly to create a healthy e-Sports culture.
The League of Legends team SBENU, which was run by Gerrard, will be run under the association's stewardship, and there will be no interruptions in the operations of the team.
Once again, we apologize for worrying all of the fans of Korean e-Sports and everyone who works tirelessly for the advancement of e-Sports.
UPDATE:
On October 19 2015 11:06 supernovamaniac wrote:
According to the news posts,
2 (YoDa + Gerrard) + 4 brokers + 3 who bet via brokers + 2 people who were not arrested but charged
According to the news posts,
2 (YoDa + Gerrard) + 4 brokers + 3 who bet via brokers + 2 people who were not arrested but charged
On October 19 2015 11:10 supernovamaniac wrote:
Nothing in particular except the names that were mentioned before, and the fact that matches were fixed between Jan and June of this year.
Nothing in particular except the names that were mentioned before, and the fact that matches were fixed between Jan and June of this year.
