He then allegedly used the stolen money to fund a life of luxury.
Former Jacksonville Jaguars employee Amit Patel has been accused of stealing over $22 million from the team to fund a luxury lifestyle.
It is alleged that the scheme lasted from 2019 until earlier in 2023.
Patel was charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of illegal monetary transaction.
Although the court documents referred to the team as “Business A”, The Athletic reported that the team was the Jacksonville Jaguars, which is owned by Shahid Khan.
Patel was the former manager of financial planning and analysis, overseeing financial statements and the department’s budget.
He exploited his access to the club’s Virtual Credit Card (VCC) program, something authorised employees used for business-related transactions.
Patel carried out a scheme involving recurring transactions such as catering, airfare and hotel charges.
Patel inflated legitimate transactions, duplicated them and entered bogus transactions to misappropriate funds.
He then allegedly used the stolen money to fund a life of luxury.
This included placing online bets, purchasing cryptocurrency, non-fungible tokens, electronics, sports memorabilia, a country club membership, spa treatments, concerts and sporting event tickets.
Patel also used the money to pay for chartered flights in private jets for himself and his friends, a new Tesla Model 3 and a Nissan pickup truck.
He even purchased a condominium in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
The court filing does not state what Patel allegedly bet on with the online gambling sites.
In a statement, the Jacksonville Jaguars said:
“We can confirm that in February 2023, the team terminated the employment of the individual named in the filing.
“Over the past several months we have cooperated fully with the FBI and the US Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida during their investigation and thank them for their efforts in this case.
“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.”
If convicted, Patel may be required to forfeit property “in the amount of at least $22,221,454.40, which represents the proceeds of the offence” in addition to assets “purchased or funded with the proceeds of the offences and/or involved in an illegal monetary transaction”.
Patel’s attorney filed a waiver of indictment in which Patel waived prosecution by indictment and consented that “the proceeding may be by Information rather than Indictment”.