Ex Indian-origin financial manager of US football team jailed over wire fraud

AMIT PATEL, an Indian-origin former financial manager of Jacksonville Jaguars, has been sentenced to six-and-half years in jail for embezzling more than $22 million (over £17 million) from the assets of the American football team and engaging in illegal monetary transactions, court papers showed. 

Henry L Adams, a US district judge, handed Patel the jail term on Tuesday (12), the US attorney's office, Middle District of Florida, said in a statement.

As part of his sentence, the court entered an order of forfeiture in the amount of $22,221,454.40 (£17.3 million), the proceeds of the wire fraud charge. Patel was also ordered to pay full restitution to the Jacksonville Jaguars, the victim of his offence and his former employer. Patel pleaded guilty on December 14 last year.

Court documents reveal that Patel orchestrated a fraudulent scheme resulting in the embezzlement from the Jaguars over a period of four years. Patel exploited his position as the administrator of the team's virtual credit card (VCC) programme to execute numerous purchases and transactions devoid of any genuine business intent.

Operating akin to a traditional credit card account without a physical card, the VCC system served as Patel's conduit for fraudulent activities. His illicit transactions commenced in September 2019 and persisted until his termination by the Jaguars in February 2023, according to the statement.

“This case exemplifies the FBI's relentless effort to protect American companies and their customers,” said Mark Dargis, acting special agent in charge of the FBI's Jacksonville division.

“Amit 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.”

He used the embezzled amount to buy a condominium in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida; to pay for personal travel and friends (including chartering private jets and booking luxury hotels and private rental residences), to purchase a new Tesla Model 3 and a pickup truck.

He also used the proceeds to pay a criminal defence law firm, place bets with online gambling websites, purchase cryptocurrency, non-fungible tokens, a country club membership, spa treatments, concert and sporting event tickets, electronics, sports memorabilia, home furnishings, and luxury wristwatches.

However, Patel did not report any of this illicit income on his tax returns.

(With PTI inputs)