A former University of Missouri basketball star is sitting in the Tulsa County Jail days before he was set to stand trial, this time accused of trying to pay off the very woman he's charged with robbing. Marcus Denmon was booked Thursday after investigators say he used a FaceTime call to offer money to an associate of the victim, asking her to convince the woman not to testify against him.
According to FOX23, court filings state Denmon contacted the associate on Wednesday and asked her to relay a message to the victim that he was willing to pay her if she chose not to testify. Investigators claim Denmon offered the associate money herself to deliver that message, and court documents indicate the associate instead recorded the call and brought it to authorities. A judge responded by revoking Denmon's bond on Thursday and setting a new bond of $250,000, according to the station.
An Escalating Legal Fight Ahead of Monday's Trial
Denmon and his brother, Malik Denmon, are both scheduled to begin a jury trial on Monday, and the bribery allegation lands just days before jury selection. The brothers' bond situation has changed dramatically over the past year and a half: Marcus Denmon had been held on a $50,000 bond after his arrest in Kansas City, Missouri, according to Saturday Down South, a figure that has now quintupled following the alleged FaceTime bribe attempt.
Denmon was formally charged in Tulsa County District Court with robbery with a dangerous weapon, a felony under Oklahoma law, the outlet reported. If the FaceTime allegations lead to a separate prosecution, Oklahoma law treats bribing or attempting to induce a witness to give false testimony or withhold testimony as its own felony, carrying penalties of up to 20 years in prison when tied to a felony trial, according to the Wirth Law Office.
What Police Say Happened in Kansas City
The underlying case dates back to an alleged armed robbery in Kansas City, with Tulsa County as the jurisdiction for the charges. Marcus and Malik Denmon are accused of robbing a woman at gunpoint while she loaded packages into her car for a bachelorette party. Police said the brothers stole packages, thousands of dollars in cash, and a pistol before fleeing the scene. Officers said they matched the car used in the robbery to a rental vehicle the two men had rented in Kansas City.
Saturday Down South's earlier reporting on the case adds more granular detail: allegations state Denmon rented the vehicle in Missouri three days before the robbery, tinted its windows, and ambushed the woman as she loaded her car, making off with $15,000 to $16,000 in cash. Investigators also tracked nearly $4,000 in suspicious cash deposits at Kansas City-area ATMs between January 17 and January 26, 2025, the outlet reported. FOX23 has said it first covered the case in March 2025, when the brothers were arrested in Kansas City, Missouri, in connection with charges in Tulsa County.
If convicted of robbery with a dangerous weapon, Denmon would face a sentence ranging from five years to life in prison, according to the statute cited by Tulsa Criminal Attorney.
A College Standout Turned Overseas Pro
Denmon's arrest is a jarring turn for a player who was once one of the most decorated guards in Missouri basketball history. Before Mizzou, he starred at Hogan Preparatory Academy in Kansas City, leading his team to a 2008 Class 3 state championship and earning the DiRenna Award as the city's top high school player, according to University of Missouri Athletics.
Over four seasons at Missouri from 2008 to 2012, Denmon scored 1,775 points, earned consensus second-team All-American honors in 2012, and was named a two-time First-Team All-Big 12 guard. He was selected 59th overall in the 2012 NBA Draft by the San Antonio Spurs but never appeared in a regular-season NBA game, instead building a 12-year professional career overseas that included a Greek League championship with Panathinaikos B.C. in 2018. Mizzou inducted him into its Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame that same year.
None of the robbery or bribery allegations against Marcus Denmon have been proven in court, and jury selection in the robbery case against both brothers is set to begin Monday in Tulsa County.
