All White Clayton Lewis asks to return to NZ amid Card fixing trial

Suspended All Whites midfielder Clayton Lewis, accused of yellow-card fixing, will ask a court for permission to travel home to New Zealand.

Ex-Macarthur Bulls player Lewis, 27, was arrested and charged alongside former captain Ulises Davila, 33, and midfielder Kearyn Baccus, 33, over the alleged betting corruption scheme.

Davila - who parted ways with the club soon after his May arrest - allegedly acted as the conduit between the southwest Sydney team’s players and a criminal group in Colombia.

The trio had their matters briefly heard at Sydney’s Downing Centre Local Court on Thursday, when Lewis’ solicitor Rose Cetin said the midfielder wanted to vary his bail conditions.

Currently restricted from leaving Australia, the 27-year-old wants to return to New Zealand. But Magistrate Christine Haskett refused to hear the application until after Lewis had purchased the plane tickets and locked in his dates of travel.

The midfielder attended court in person, while Davila and Baccus were excused. All three cases were adjourned until December 12 after the magistrate was told police were still awaiting evidence being compiled from overseas.

In August, the court heard prosecutors were seeking gaming-machine records and bookmaker statements from BetPlay Colombia, Bet365 New Jersey, and Bet365 Bulgaria.

Police say the betting scheme led to hundreds of thousands of dollars being paid out in winnings and was headed by a Colombian contact.

Davila allegedly paid Baccus and Lewis up to A$10,000 ($11,000) to deliberately receive yellow cards through the scheme.

Investigators allege yellow cards, which are universally issued as cautions by referees for foul play, were manipulated during games played on November 24 and December 9.

Macarthur played out a 1-1 draw with Melbourne Victory on November 24 before beating Sydney FC 2-0 on December 9. All three charged players were booked in the December 9 game against Sydney.

Police also allege unsuccessful attempts were made to do the same thing during matches on April 20 and May 4.

Baccus was released by the Bulls during a 2024 off-season clean-out, while all three players were suspended from the A-League Men’s competition following their arrests.

This article was first published on nzherald.co.nz and is republished here with permission