Lately, it feels like there are more and more white-collar crimes being committed in the sports world. From shady agents (ex-NBA agent Charles Briscoe), to greedy doctors (NBA Dr. Wahab), to perfectionist parents (Operation Varsity Blues), it seems no sport is safe from fraudsters.
Now, a former Jacksonville Jaguars finance employee has been sentenced to six years and six months in prison.[1] Last year, Amit Patel, 31, pled guilty to embezzling more than $22 million from the team that was eventually used for online gambling.[2]
Over the course of three and a half years, Patel moved about $20 million from team accounts to FanDuel and $1 million to DraftKings.[3] He used the rest of the money to fund an extravagant lifestyle.[4] Patel spent over $200,000 on golf mementos (he paid $47,113.92 for Tiger Woods’ 1996 putter), $78,800 in private jets, and $278,000 on travel.[5] He also continued to spend cash after his firing, purchasing a Trevor Lawrence jersey for $2,200 on eBay.[6]
Patel’s restitution tab rang in at a whopping $21,132,454.40.[7]
After Patel’s sentencing, FBI Agent Mark Dargis said Patel “knowingly and wittingly created a deceptive scheme to fund a lavish lifestyle at his employer’s expense, and today’s sentencing is a warning to other scam artists: The FBI and our partners will continue to aggressively pursue corporate fraud investigations to protect consumers from bearing the costs associated with criminal activity.”[8]
Clearly, the FBI wants Patel’s sentencing to serve as a warning and a deterrent to other fraudsters. Had Patel been handed a lighter sentence, it may have sent a message that one can steal $22 million and get a mere slap on the wrist.
The FBI’s messaging can be paralleled to the way in which governing bodies of sport and governments are enforcing anti-doping measures in other professional sport leagues (read about RADA). It seems that law enforcement officials have had enough of misconduct taking away from sport. Given the immense amount of money associated with the sports industry, it is not surprising that people become greedy and commit crimes. Yet, hopefully continued scrutiny by law enforcement can help everyone get back to what really matters – the enjoyment of sport itself.
Image credit: AP Photo/ Peter Joneleit
[1] https://www.law360.com/sports-and-betting/articles/1812975?nl_pk=9ba2e64f-6b40-49a9-8029-c1a37ae85bfb&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=sports-and-betting&utm_content=2024-03-13&read_main=1&nlsidx=0&nlaidx=0
[2] Id.
[3] Id.
[4] Id.
[5] https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/nfl/jaguars/2024/03/12/former-jaguars-employee-amit-patel-prison-sentence/72947340007/
[6] Id.
[7] https://apnews.com/article/jacksonville-jaguars-employee-fraud-176075a2d6cffd292a856e87f7d9d81b
[8] https://www.law360.com/sports-and-betting/articles/1812975?nl_pk=9ba2e64f-6b40-49a9-8029-c1a37ae85bfb&utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=sports-and-betting&utm_content=2024-03-13&read_main=1&nlsidx=0&nlaidx=0
3L at the University at Buffalo School of Law
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