Former Jaguars Employee Accused Of Stealing $22 Million Did So To Pay Off Gambling Debt, According To Lawyer

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The former Jacksonville Jaguars employee who is accused of stealing a little over $22 million from the organization did so to pay back previous gambling losses, according to the man's lawyer.

Amit Patel, who worked for the team from 2019 to 2023, has been charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of illegal monetary transaction after exploiting the Jaguars' virtual credit card program.

A recent court filing states Patel hid transactions by identifying “reoccurring VCC transactions, such as catering, airfare, and hotel charges, and then duplicated those transactions; he inflated the amounts of legitimate reoccurring transactions; he entered completely fictitious transactions that might sound plausible, but that never actually occurred.”

Patel's attorney, Alex King, shared in a statement earlier in the week saying his client " used VCC funds to gamble on Daily Fantasy Sports" on FanDuel and DraftKings and that "approximately 99% of the misappropriated funds" were related to gambling losses, according to ESPN.

"Mr. Patel did not use the Jaguars' VCC to fund his lifestyle, but in a horribly misguided effort to pay back previous gambling losses that utilized the Jaguars' VCC program," King continued.

The original court filing did note that some of the allegedly stolen funds were spent on "online gambling." They also referenced other purchases including a condo in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL, chartering private jets for he and his friends, a Tesla Model 3, a Nissan truck, a country club membership, a watch worth $95,000, and some cryptocurrency.

"Mr. Patel is deeply remorseful and apologizes for his conduct," King said. "He loved working for the Jacksonville Jaguars and regrets his actions which have resulted in him both losing his dream job and damaging the organization. Mr. Patel remains in treatment and intends to seek ongoing treatment for the foreseeable future."

Federal investigators alleged that Patel's scheme began in September 2019 before ending in February 2023.

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.