Former Arizona assistant coach Book Richardson pleaded guilty Monday to one count of federal funds bribery, part of a plea agreement related to the federal investigation into college basketball.
Richardson's attorney, Craig Mordock, told the Star he filed the plea agreement paperwork with federal attorneys in New York. Richardson was initially indicted on four charges — federal funds bribery, honest services fraud, wire fraud conspiracy and Travel Act conspiracy.
A federal complaint said Richardson took $20,000 from an aspiring sports agent to spend on recruits in exchange for steering Arizona players to the agent for professional representation. The UA suspended and eventually fired Richardson.
Richardson may face between 18 and 24 months in prison if precedent holds, though a final sentence could be outside of that. Former USC assistant coach Tony Bland also came to a plea agreement last month, though he was found to have taken only $5,000, and could as such receive a lighter penalty. Bland is scheduled to be sentenced April 2.
Richardson could have faced up to three or four years of prison if he went through with his trial, which was scheduled for April, and was found guilty.
Mordock said he and Richardson had been talking about a plea agreement since Thanksgiving, and reached one Monday. The first trial into college basketball fraud resulted in convictions, making it more likely other individuals who were charged would reach plea agreements.
Mordock said Richardson had “benefited the University of Arizona" and positively affected the lives of UA players during his eight-plus years with the program. Richardson followed head coach Sean Miller to Arizona from Xavier, where the two had coached together for three seasons.
Richardson declined to comment. The coach has remained in Southern Arizona since his September 2017 arrest, traveling only briefly to Las Vegas and Chicago for basketball tournaments and the NBA Draft combine, and to New York City for court appearances. In December, Richardson attended a HoopHall basketball showcase in Phoenix. He told the Star that while he couldn't speak about his ongoing case, he was humbled by the support he's received from his former players.
"I’ve been blessed to have coached so many great players who have reached out to just check on me, and in that situation, it’s been really awesome,” he said.
Richardson said then that he hoped to return to coaching.
Monday's plea comes one month and four days after attorneys for Richardson and his co-defendants filed a 39-page joint motion asking that all charges be dropped. The filing said the men didn’t commit any crimes and that their actions aren’t “remotely considered unlawful,” according to the motion.
Attorneys for the government filed a motion on Thursday asking for a 15-day extension in filing their response to the motion, saying they were “actively engaged in plea negotiations with several of the defendants in the case.”
U.S. District Judge Edgardo Ramos granted the government’s motion earlier Monday, giving federal prosecutors until Jan. 29 to respond to the motion.
