SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Billionaire Chris Hansen, who tried to move the Kings NBA franchise from Sacramento to Seattle, is behind a secretive effort to thwart the citys efforts to build a new downtown arena for the professional basketball team, Californias campaign watchdog disclosed Friday after an investigation. The announcement is an embarrassment for Hansen, who lost his bid after NBA owners voted to keep the team in Californias capital city, and it could undermine support for the local ballot measure Hansen funded that is designed to put to a citywide vote the councils planned $258 million subsidy for a downtown arena. "I made a mistake I regret," Hansen said in a written statement. "While Im sure everyone can appreciate how easy it is to get caught up in the heat of battle, with the benefit of hindsight, this is clearly a decision I regret." Hansen had said he would end his effort to buy the Kings for $625 million after the NBA blocked the sale, and a group of investors led by technology executive Vivek Ranadive bought the team a day later for $535 million. Hansen publicly wished the city well after losing his bid to buy the team. Yet the California Fair Political Practices Commission said that a month later, Hansen gave $80,000 to pay signature gatherers trying to get the measure on next Junes ballot, and the group violated state law by refusing to disclose the donation. The NBA has said that Sacramento must build a modern arena to keep the Kings in town. The teams new owners have set a 2016 target. Hansens money was funneled through the Los Angeles law firm of Loeb & Loeb. Hansen said the firm approached him about making a contribution to the petition effort after he had hired them to gauge citizen opposition during the battle over the sale. Members of Sacramento Taxpayers Opposed to Pork, which filed to put the initiative on the June 2014 ballot, distanced themselves from the money and said they use only volunteers to circulate petitions. Spokesman John Hyde said the money went to a political group that offered to assist STOPs efforts. "No doubt this is a PR nightmare for STOP," Hyde said. "We didnt know where that money came from and we werent the recipient of any of that funding." The signature gatherers are halfway to the 22,000 they need to qualify the measure by December, Hyde said. Gary Winuk, chief of the commissions enforcement division, said Hansen donated $100,000 total. It was not immediately clear what happened to the additional $20,000, though Winuk said it might have been spent on other expenses. He said the investigation is continuing. "These are as sophisticated parties as you can get and they should know better," Winuk said. "Most people just comply when we call them. They just happened to make us take them to court." The donors were intentionally denying the public information that could help them decide whether to sign the petition, he said. The commission filed a lawsuit Thursday to learn the donors identity and revealed during a Friday news conference that it was Hansen. "Unbelievable," said state Senate President pro Tempore Darrel Steinberg, who is from Sacramento and was active in efforts to keep the Kings in town. Kings and NBA officials declined comment, as did Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, a former NBA all-star who led the fight to keep the team. Suspicion about the origins of the money originally had fallen on the Maloof family that previously owned the team because the same law firm had long represented them. The commission was dropping its lawsuit, but Winuk said Hansen and the law firm could face a civil fine of up to $80,000 plus an administrative fine of up to $5,000 for each of at least three campaign-reporting violations. 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The Brazilian goalkeeper signed a loan deal with the Major League Soccer club on Friday as he looks to get playing time ahead of this summers World Cup in his home country.PITTSBURGH -- The night after a long Pittsburgh Pirates winning streak ended, one of their starting pitchers extended one of his own. Jeff Locke won his eighth consecutive decision, Pedro Alvarez hit a three-run homer and the Pirates hung on to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 6-5 Wednesday night. Locke (8-1) was scored upon for the first time in four home starts but extended his unbeaten streak to 16 outings. Locke, who hasnt lost since his first start of the season, allowed two earned runs on seven hits and three walks over 5 2-3 innings. "Theyre going to get their hits -- and Im also going to make my pitches," Locke said. "Im going to win some battles; theyre going to win some battles. A night like tonight theyre finding some holes and hitting the ball pretty hard at points, youve just got to try to stay consistent and dont teeter away from what you do well." The Pirates took the lead with a four-run fifth punctuated by Alvarezs 21st home run. Andrew McCutchen reached base five times, scoring twice for the Pirates (52-31), who have the majors best record and had a nine-game winning streak snapped in the series opener Tuesday. "Ill tell you what -- theres something special going on here," Locke said. "All the guys pull for each other every night. Were not out of a game, ever. And I think the Pirates of the past could get out of a game early, wed kind of get down on ourselves a little bit and think that hills too tall to climb. But nothing here these guys cant do." Delmon Young and Domonic Brown each had three hits for the Phillies, who have lost four of six. Young has 1,001 career hits. Browns two-run homer with two outs in the ninth pulled the Phillies within one, but Jason Grilli stuck out Young to seal his NL-best 28th save. Philadelphias John Lannan (1-3) fell to 1-5 in his career against the Pirates, getting tagged for four runs on 11 hits and three walks in five innings. Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said, "It definitely wasnt one of (Lannans) better games." Still, he kept Pittsburgh off the scoreboard through four. The Pirates left seven men on base in that stretch. Pittsburgh loaded the bases with no outs in the second, but Locke struck out and Starling Marte bounced into a double play. "I was battling all night, and I was able to pitch myself out of a lot of jams," Lannan said. "But then I made a bad pitch to Alvarez, and that was the difference in the game." McCutchen, Sanchez and Martin hit consecutive one-out singles in the fifth, the latter driving in a run. Alvarez followed with his fourth home run over his past six games against the Phillies. "I was just up there ttrying to be ready to hit and not really sitting on anything," Alvarez said.dddddddddddd "I was just trying to go out there and put a good at-bat together." Those runs erased an early deficit for the Pirates. When Ben Revere drove in Brown with a bloop single to left with two outs in the fourth, it snapped a 24-inning scoreless streak for Locke at PNC Park. Thats the longest home shutout streak for a Pirates pitcher since Jerry Reuss did it for 34 innings in 1975. Locke had his scheduled start bumped back a day when he was forced to warm up in the bullpen during the 14th inning of a win Sunday. He had three consecutive home starts in which he did not allow a run between May 14 and Wednesday. "As much as anything, hes got a very good demeanour," Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle said. "There seems to be no panic, no urgency. He just continues to make pitches and focus on that pitch to that hitter." Justin Wilson allowed an RBI single to pinch hitter Kevin Frandsen, but -- after a Jordy Mercer error led to another Phillies run -- struck out Chase Utley to end the sixth. Jeanmar Gomez struck out pinch hitter Ryan Howard to finish a scoreless seventh and Mark Melancon worked a perfect eighth. Browns home run off of Grilli snapped a 27 1-3-inning scoreless streak by the Pirates bullpen. Brown has three home runs through nine games on Philadelphias road trip and a team-high 22 on the season. "Id like to make the All-Star team; itd be a great honour," the 25-year-old Brown said. "Im not really thinking about that right now. Im thinking about our team and how we can start winning some games." NOTES: Martins second RBI came when he doubled in McCutchen in the sixth. ... Howard was not in the starting lineup for the second time in a four-game span. Howard, who snapped out of an 0-for-22 slump with two hits Tuesday, has been bothered by a sore left knee all season. He was walking gingerly after Tuesdays game, one in which he scored from first by sprinting on a double during the sixth inning. ... The Pirates activated OF Jose Tabata before the game and optioned RHP Brandon Cumpton to Triple-A Indianapolis. Cumpton was recalled to start Tuesdays game in lieu of Locke. ... Buoyed by thousands of Phillies fans who made the drive across the state, the announced paid crowd of 33,197 was the Pirates eighth consecutive of at least 30,000 at home. ... RHP Gerrit Cole is the first Pirates pitcher to win each of his first four career starts in more than a century. He makes his fifth major league start in the series finale Thursday. LHP Cole Hamels (2-11, 4.58), who starts for the Phillies, has one win since April. ' ' '