BATON ROUGE — Kayshon Boutte wore the coveted No. 7 in his final season at LSU, bearing the jersey number awarded to a Tigers football player critical to the team’s offense. At the same time, state police say, he was gambling illegally, at times on himself.

Police arrested the New Iberia native Thursday and accused him of computer fraud, a felony, and illegal gaming, a misdemeanor. Investigators say Boutte lied about his age to the FanDuel online sportsbook and placed nearly 9,000 wagers before he turned 21.

A day before LSU's 2022 season opener against Florida State, he predicted that he would have at least 83 receiving yards and one touchdown against the Seminoles. He had two catches for 20 yards and no touchdowns.

An affidavit filed in East Baton Rouge Parish court ssaid FanDuel contacted Louisiana State Police last July, saying it had evidence that "a prohibited person, a collegiate athlete, possibly made several sports wagers." The account was funded through Visa card owned by Boutte or his mother, and was opened in the name of someone who was already age 21.

FanDuel flagged 17 wagers on college football games, prompting it to notify Louisiana authorities. Six of the bets included action on LSU games, and two of those involved Boutte directly, the affidavit says. Software within FanDuel's gaming app  placed some of the transactions to the LSU football operations center. The software is required to prevent people from gambling in places where online gaming is illegal.

The court records show that one of Boutte's gaming profiles in 2022 saw nearly $451,000 in wagers, with $385,000 won. At the end of the year, the account balance was $331.47.

In 2023, just over $186,000 was wagered, and about $171,000 won. It had a balance at the end of the year of 67 cents.

LSU said Thursday it heard about the allegation last summer.

“Since then, we have fully cooperated with all relevant authorities involved in the investigation and will continue to do so,” a statement from LSU sports information director Michael Bonnette. “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.”

Computer fraud is punishable by a fine of up to $10,000 and a prison term of five years or less. Illegal gambling of this nature carries maximum penalties of a $1,000 fine and six months in jail. 

In his first year with the Tigers, Boutte set a Southeastern Conference record for receiving in 2020, with 308 yards against Ole Miss.

Despite playing in only 11 games during 2022 (he started in 10), Boutte was the Tigers’ second-leading receiver, with 538 yards in 11 games. He also had a 41-yard run against Southern. The three-year letterman was drafted in the sixth round of last year’s NFL draft by the New England Patriots.

An injury knocked him out midway through the 2021 season.

Boutte turned 21 last May, making any bet placed after that legal.

Here's the full affidavit: