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Former Jaguars employee imprisoned for embezzlement
Amit Patel is sentenced to six and a half years in prison for committing a fraud totaling US$22 million
Amit Patel, a resident of Jacksonville, committed a fraud of US$22 million / jaguars.com
Amit Patel, a former employee of the NFL team Jaguars, Jacksonville, was sentenced to six years and six months in federal prison by US District Judge Henry L Adams. Patel, aged 31 and a resident of Jacksonville, was convicted of wire fraud and engaging in an illegal monetary transaction of US$22 million.
The court also ordered a penalty for his wire fraud scheme for a total of US$22,221,454.40. The sentence came after Patel pleaded guilty on Dec. 14, 2023, for his involvement in the fraud. The investigation into his fraudulent activities was jointly conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) – Criminal Investigation.
Operating through his role as the administrator for the team's virtual credit card (VCC) program, Patel orchestrated hundreds of unauthorized transactions without any legitimate business purpose. His modus operandi included fabricating accounting files with false entries and submitting them to the Jaguars' accounting department to conceal his criminal activities.
Patel's scheme spanned from September 2019 to February 2023, during which he spent the embezzled funds on a lavish lifestyle. Commenting on the case, Acting Special Agent in Charge Lani Rosado-Espinal said in a statement, “Today, the IRS intercepted Patel’s playbook and achieved justice for the American public. Patel deceived the Jacksonville Jaguars and used his position of trust to steal from the team, gamble on games, and fund a lavish lifestyle. IRS-CI will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to provide the financial expertise to unravel sophisticated fraud and money laundering schemes.”
The proceeds were utilized for gambling on online platforms, purchasing luxury items, acquiring properties, and indulging in travel. Notably, Patel failed to report any of these ill-gotten gains on his tax returns, further exacerbating the severity of his offenses.
Commenting on the case, Mark Dargis, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Jacksonville Division, emphasized the bureau's commitment to combat corporate fraud and protect consumers from the repercussions of criminal activity. He stated, “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.”
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