A former running back for the Chicago Bears and Buffalo Bills, who allegedly used public funds to settle his gambling debts, was described as a poor poker player by a past World Series of Poker champion. 

Ayaz Mahmood, with $1.7 million in earnings from live tournaments, was giving testimony in the fraud and bribery case involving former NFL player Anthony Hutchison, who left professional football in 1985. 

Federal prosecutors in Texas allege that Hutchison defrauded the Houston Independent Schools District (HISD) of $6 million by consistently overcharging for landscaping services, including lawn care and mulch, from 2013 to 2019. He accomplished this by offering bribes to Brian Busby, the former HISD chief operating officer and a co-defendant, who was responsible for awarding contracts and their values, as stated in court documents. 

‘Absence of Control’ 

At times, the case has been tedious, filled with extensive forensic accounting and protracted debates over the rate of grass growth—quite literally, since Hutchinson billed for mowing school lawns four times each month, a frequency deemed excessive according to expert evidence. 

It came to life on Thursday when Mahmood stated that Hutchison participated in Pot-Limit Omaha (PLO) two or three times weekly at the Prime Social Club in Houston. 

When asked if Hutchison was a good player, he responded negatively, stating that the ex-athlete likely lost "99% of the time." 

Mahmood acknowledged that players at the club would eagerly face Hutchison due to his insufficient “control and maturity” for being a poker player. He mentioned that he had observed Hutchison lose over $300K in just one day. 

“He would chase it,” Mahmood said. “We call it poker tilt, which means if you’re losing, you chase it and try to make your money back.”

The testimony seemed to strengthen the government’s claim that Hutchison fabricated invoices to charge HISD for unperformed work in order to settle his substantial gambling debts. 

Registro de Verificaciones 

Mahmood also acknowledged introducing Hutchison to Theodore Theilen, the proprietor of a logging firm called Bulldog Timber. Theilen confessed during his testimony to cashing checks for Hutchison that were issued to Bulldog, even though his company had not done any work for HSID. 

According to prosecutors, some of these checks were dated just after the 2020 Super Bowl when Hutchison lost over $150K wagering on the game. 

Defense lawyers argue that Hutchison was merely attempting to conceal his addiction from business associates and that his tax preparers made mistakes in classification. 

If found guilty on all charges – including conspiracy, bribery, wire fraud, and submitting false tax returns – he may face many years in prison.