The charges stem from Boutte’s actions when he was a student-athlete at LSU. According to police, investigators from the gaming enforcement division discovered that Boutte participated in sports gambling from April 6, 2022, until May 7, 2023. Boutte allegedly used an alias to circumvent the legal age (21 or older) required to place sports wagers in Louisiana.

He placed more than 8,900 wagers, including 17 on NCAA football games and six on LSU, according to police.

“In July 2023, LSU was made aware of allegations regarding a former student-athlete’s improper conduct related to sports gambling while enrolled at the University,” LSU said in a statement. “Since then, we have fully cooperated with all relevant authorities involved in the investigation and will continue to do so.

“We have no evidence that any other student-athletes participated in these prohibited activities, and we are grateful for measures that detect and discourage sports gambling related misconduct.”

The Patriots selected Boutte in the sixth round of the April 2023 NFL Draft. He played in five games this past season, logging two catches on seven targets for 17 yards.

The team released a statement, saying, “The New England Patriots are 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. I don’t anticipate that we will be providing any additional comments at this time.”

The NFL said in a statement, “We are aware of the matter but have no further comment at this time.”

Nicole Yang can be reached at [email protected] her @nicolecyang.