*“Basketball Wives” alum Brittish Williams is speaking out about her gambling addiction in a new interview with reality TV producer Carlos King.
Williams will spend the next four years in federal prison after being convicted for tax fraud, bank fraud, and PPP loan fraud.
It seems her legal troubles began after receiving insurance money from her father’s passing and using the cash to repair her credit after losing tens of thousands of dollars to her gambling addiction. Page Six reports that Williams sought help from a financial advisor, who sold her an illegal credit privacy number (CPN).
Scammers frequently mislead consumers into thinking the nine-digit number is the same as the social security number. Creating a false identity with a CPN is illegal. According to Williams, she acquired one to help reverse her financial hardship.
“When people see this misuse of a social security number, they think I went and stole people’s social security numbers or something. That wasn’t the case,” Williams explained to King.
“I bought a CPN from a credit lady and I don’t know if it was somebody’s actual social security number or if it was something they created,” Williams added. “I don’t know but that’s where that came from.”
We reported previously that Williams pleaded guilty to 15 felonies in the case. She was indicted in 2021 on federal fraud and identity theft charges, the U.S. Attorney’s Office Eastern District of Missouri said in a press release.
According to RadarOnline, she pleaded guilty in May to five counts of misuse of a Social Security number, four counts of bank fraud, three counts of making false statements to the IRS, and three counts of wire fraud.
The majority of Williams’ charges stem from financial crimes committed during the pandemic.
“British Williams has admitted an unusually large number of frauds that victimized taxpayers, banks, credit card companies, individuals, and programs that were intended to help struggling businesses and employees during the COVID-19 pandemic,” U.S. Attorney Sayler Fleming previously said.
“This is a first step towards justice for those victims,” he added. “We will also be seeking repayment of all of her ill-gotten gains.”
Williams’ “fraud and schemes” totaled $446,082.
“No one even knows this besides my family and friends: I used to have a very, very bad gambling problem, horrible,” Williams told King, according to Page Six. “Like when you think about people … being on drugs or people … being alcoholics, I don’t think there is anything worse than gambling.”
She added, “It was really an addiction that I literally had to wean myself from. And on top of having my lifestyle and, you know, just everything that I was used to doing and having this addiction was horrible,” she tells King.
“I remember being just at Christmas one year and losing almost $50,000, like, in two days. It was horrible.”
Watch her conversation with King via the YouTube clip above.
READ MORE: Reality Star Brittish Williams Sentenced to 4 Years in Federal Fraud Case
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