TU athletic director is an 'admitted gambler,' FBI says

Ross M. Parmley, 39, was named athletic director Jan. 19. He has worked for the university's athletics department since 2005.

Parmley has not been charged. The university placed Parmley on paid administrative leave hours after The Oklahoman contacted his attorney for comment.

Mitchell, 58, is awaiting trial on a federal indictment that accuses him of operating an illegal gambling enterprise.

Parmley admitted to FBI agents he bet on college and professional football games for years before quitting gambling early in 2010, a source told The Oklahoman. He told the agents he used the Internet to make the bets.

He also told FBI agents that he made payments to Mitchell on losses and collected from Mitchell on wins, the source said.

He told agents in the 2011 interview that he had informed TU officials he was cooperating with the investigation, the source said.

Parmley was never a target or subject of the gambling investigation but is cooperating with federal authorities, his attorney, Derek Chance, said Tuesday.

Parmley does not know yet if prosecutors will ask him to testify as a witness at Mitchell's trial, the attorney also said. “That's, of course, up to the U.S. attorney's office,” the attorney said.

Chance said Parmley did not testify before the grand jury that indicted Mitchell in September.

Parmley was described in an 84-page court affidavit unsealed last week as an “admitted gambler with Mitchell.”

FBI Special Agent Francis J. Bowles Jr. reported in the affidavit that Mitchell deposited a $1,782 check from Parmley in a bank account between Nov. 7, 2009, and Dec. 10, 2009. The agent reported Parmley identified the check as a gambling payment.

Mitchell contends he is a professional gambler who acted legally and paid taxes on his gambling income.

He is accused in the indictment of making millions of dollars by hosting illegal high-stakes poker games at his home and by illegally taking bets on sporting events.