Kayshon Boutte arrested in Louisiana on charges for illegal sports gambling while at LSU

FOXBORO -- Patriots receiver Kayshon Boutte is in some trouble in Louisiana. Boutte has been arrested in Baton Rouge on charges related to illegal online gambling.

Boutte turned himself in on Thursday and is facing charges of Computer Fraud -- which is a felony -- and a misdemeanor count of Gaming Prohibited for Persons Under 21. The charges allege that Boutte, who turned 21 last May, created a fraudulent online gaming account that said he was 21 years old or older so that he could legally gamble while he was still at student at LSU.

He used that account to make nearly 9,000 illegal bets, including six on the LSU football team while he was a member of the Tigers in 2022.

The Louisiana State Police issued the following statement on the matter:

In July of 2023, Investigators assigned to the Louisiana State Police Gaming Enforcement Division were contacted by an online gambling company regarding sports wagers made by a prohibited person. Investigators learned that former Louisiana State University (LSU) football player, 21-year-old Kayshon Boutte of Baton Rouge, participated in sports gambling from April 6, 2022, until May 7, 2023, when he was 20 years old. During this period, Boutte used an alias to circumvent the legal age required for placing sports wagers in Louisiana. Between April 6, 2022, and May 7, 2023, the alias account believed to be used by Boutte placed over 8,900 wagers. Of the 8,900 wagers, at least seventeen were on National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) football games, with at least six of those wagers on LSU football.

On January 18, 2024, an arrest warrant was signed through the 19th Judicial District Court, charging Boutte with L.R.S. 14:73.5 – Computer Fraud (Felony – One Count) and L.R.S. 27:260 – Gaming Prohibited for Persons Under 21 (Misdemeanor – One Count). On January 25, 2024, Boutte was booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish jail on the aforementioned charges. This investigation is still ongoing, and additional charges may be forthcoming.

The Patriots released a statement saying the team is "aware that Kayshon Boutte is cooperating with Louisiana police regarding their investigation into an underage gambling charge while he was a student at Louisiana State University." The team does not anticipate making any more comments on the matter.

The NFL is aware of the arrest but has no comment at this time, via Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. 

Boutte was a standout receiver his first two seasons at LSU and was viewed as a potential high draft pick. But his stock dropped after he struggled his junior year, and the Patriots drafted him in the sixth round of the 2023 NFL Draft.

He played in just five games for the Patriots as a rookie, limited to just 117 offensive snaps, and finished the season with only two catches on seven targets for 19 yards.