New England Patriots wide receiver Kayshon Boutte has had the charges of underage gambling and computer fraud dropped.
According to an ESPN report, the State of Louisiana dismissed the charges against the former LSU Tiger on Tuesday. Boutte was initially arrested in January for illegal wagering during his time in Baton Rouge. The Louisiana State Police Gaming Enforcement Division had been investigating Boutte, who faced a felony count of computer fraud and a misdemeanor count of gambling prohibited for persons under 21. Boutte, a sixth-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, played in six games for the Patriots last season, recording two receptions for 19 yards despite his legal issues.
During the investigation, it was found that Boutte allegedly used an alias to place nearly 9,000 sports bets between April 2022 and May 2023. At 20 years old, he allegedly used a FanDuel account with a credit card registered to his mother. Court documents revealed that the account used Boutte’s full name in its username, with another FanDuel account opened in Massachusetts in 2023.
FanDuel flagged the new Massachusetts account due to discrepancies in Boutte’s age, as he turned 21 only a month before it was created.
Boutte allegedly placed bets while on LSU’s campus, including at least 15 wagers on college football games, six of which involved the Tigers.
Despite the allegations, Boutte was not punished by the NFL, as its rules only prohibit wagering on league games and events and ban wagering at team facilities. Police initially claimed Boutte continued to wager for a week after being drafted. The 22-year-old will be entering the Patriots’ training camp this month, competing for a roster spot.