wsls
In Clarksburg, West Virginia, former college basketball player Kerr Kriisa entered a guilty plea on Thursday to a federal wire fraud charge, admitting that he demanded $9,000 from a victim as part of a fraudulent scheme. The plea was announced by U.S. Attorney Matthew L. Harvey for the Northern District of West Virginia in a news release.
According to the plea agreement, Kriisa, in February, impersonated a fictitious individual named Irene and sent an email to a person requesting money to prevent litigation and publicity related to a financial dispute. Harvey stated, "Financial fraud is not a game, and those who choose to deceive and exploit others will be held accountable."
Kriisa, a 6-foot-3 guard from Estonia, faces a maximum sentence of two years in prison. His sentencing is set for December 22. His attorney, federal public defender Richard Walker, declined to comment on the plea agreement.
Key Analysis
Kriisa's college basketball career included stints at several prominent programs. He led the Pac-12 in assists during two seasons at Arizona, where he began his college career in 2020. He was suspended for the first nine games of his lone season at West Virginia after admitting to receiving impermissible benefits while at Arizona. In 2024, he transferred to Kentucky but was limited to nine games due to a foot injury. He spent his final year of eligibility at Cincinnati, where he started 12 games before suffering a separated shoulder.
The 25-year-old was indicted in June on five counts of wire fraud in what prosecutors alleged was a $2.2 million scheme dating back to at least 2022. The indictment claimed Kriisa repeatedly sought payments from two victims, sometimes instructing one to transfer money to the other under false pretenses. He also signed an agreement in April 2025 promising to repay one victim $100,000 by February 2026 but never did, prosecutors said. From 2022 through June 2 of this year, Kriisa posed as other people, including his own mother, and falsely claimed that he and his family urgently needed money to deal with an emergency, according to the indictment.
Originally reported by wsls.