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Arizona has started the process to fire assistant men’s basketball coach Book Richardson.
University of Arizona President Robert C. Robbins has ordered an independent investigation into the actions of men’s assistant basketball coach Emanuel “Book” Richardson after he was charged and has initiated steps to fire him.
He also asked the university “to retain an external law firm to conduct the investigation.”
“We also have reviewed the specific factual allegations in the criminal complaint and have initiated the dismissal process against Mr. Richardson,” he said in a statement Wednesday night.
Richardson’s arrest was part of a widespread FBI investigation that began in 2015 into the criminal influence of money on NCAA coaches and student athletes. Three other assistant coaches at other schools also were arrested this week as part of the fraud and bribery investigation: Auburn’s Chuck Person, Southern California’s Tony Bland and Oklahoma State’s Lamont Evans.
Documents filed in federal court allege that Richardson accepted $20,000 in cash bribes in exchange for agreeing to pressure players to retain a particular management company when those players turned pro and needed representation. The complain further alleges that some of the bribe money appears to have gone to at least one prospective athlete to recruit him to play for the university.
One bribe of $5,000 was received on June 20 during a meeting in New York City hotel room, and a second payment of $15,000 was made on July 20 in a New Jersey office, the complaint alleges.
Richardson, 44, has been at the UA for the entire Sean Miller era, having followed Miller to Arizona after the two worked together at Xavier University from 2007 to 2009.
With Miller, Richardson helped build the Arizona basketball machine back up after two years under interim coaching staffs in 2007-08 and 2008-09. He has been a recruiting mainstay ever since, although he missed part of the 2013-14 season in what the UA called a “healthrelated” leave of absence.
In Miller’s first few years, the Wildcats relied on a largely bi-coastal recruiting strategy, with Richardson paving the way out East.
“I definitely think it’s about relationships,” New York-based recruiting analyst Adam Zagoria told The Arizona Daily Star just before Kevin Parrom committed in 2009. “Arizona wasn’t really on the radar out here until the coaching change.
“Book Richardson has a ton of connections in the New York area from his coaching days, and those should benefit Arizona eventually.”
UA officials said they are cooperating with the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office and were “appalled” to learn of the allegations. Richardson was immediately suspended and relieved of all duties, UA officials announced Tuesday.
The UA president’s statement released Wednesday added: “The University of Arizona expects everyone who is part of our campus community to adhere to the highest ethical standards of behavior. Arizona Athletics has a strong culture of compliance that begins at the top and extends throughout the organization. Specifically, the athletics department has a documented history of strengthening institutional control by being proactive and comprehensive through rules education and program monitoring.”
Richardson could not be reached for comment.