FBI arrests Estonian basketballer Kerr Kriisa
The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has arrested Estonian basketball player Kerr Kriisa on suspicion of participating in a fraud scheme.
Reuters, citing Kentucky Sports Radio, reported that Kriisa was allegedly involved in a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme dating back to his time playing for West Virginia University in the NCAA.
"The arrest of the 25-year-old Estonian is linked to a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme dating back to the 2023-24 season when he played for the West Virginia Mountaineers. He will be extradited to West Virginia and a court hearing is scheduled for next week. During the recently concluded season at Cincinnati, Kriisa averaged 5.8 points and 3.0 assists in 19 games," Kentucky Sports Radio reporter Jack Pilgrim wrote on Saturday.
Sports Illustrated reported that Kriisa had been scheduled to compete in The Basketball Tournament (TBT) later this month, but will no longer participate. He had been set to play for La Familia, the University of Kentucky alumni team. Following reports of his arrest, however, the team removed him from its roster.
Kriisa moved to the United States in 2020 and played for the University of Arizona (2020-2023), West Virginia University (2023-2024), the University of Kentucky (2024-2025) and the University of Cincinnati (2025-2026). Earlier this week, he signed with reigning Estonian champion Tartu Ülikool Maks & Moorits.
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Editor: Henrik Laever, Valner Väino, Marcus Turovski
