Source: Perry Knotts / Getty
Swiping a few burgers from your fast good gig is one thing, but an eight-figure theft is another realm of skimming off the top.
That’s the situation a former Jacksonville Jaguars employee found himself in, as he’s now being accused of stealing more than $22 million from the NFL team between 2019 and 2023 by “exploiting the organization’s virtual credit card program.”
According to the Athletic, Amit Patel, who was ironically the Jaguars’ manager of financial planning and analysis, is said to have spent the millions lavishly on a Patek Philippe watch worth nearly $100,000, two cars — a Tesla Model 3 sedan, a Nissan pickup truck to be exact– and a condo near the beach.
Patel also allegedly spent the millions on cryptocurrency investments, online gambling, a country club membership and chartering private jets for himself and his friends.
The documents were filed in U.S. District Court in Jacksonville, Fla. While the Jaguars weren’t outright named, the team later confirmed with a statement noting Patel had been removed from his job back in February. The franchise is working with the FBI and others to investigate the allegations properly.
“As was made clear in the charges, this individual was a former manager of financial planning and analysis who took advantage of his trusted position to covertly and intentionally commit significant fraudulent financial activity at the team’s expense for personal benefit,” the Jaguars’ statement reads. “This individual had no access to confidential football strategy, personnel or other football information. The team engaged experienced law and accounting firms to conduct a comprehensive independent review, which concluded that no other team employees were involved in or aware of his criminal activity.”
Patel started off as a coordinator in 2018 and was later promoted to manager. In 2019, he made his first fraudulent purchases by taking “reoccurring VCC transactions, such as catering, airfare, and hotel charges,” duplicating them and inflating the actual costs.
Patel has been charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of illegal monetary transaction for his alleged crimes.
Ex-Jacksonville Jaguars Employee Accused Of Stealing Over $22M From NFL Franchise was originally published on cassiuslife.com
