Ex-NFL player John Robert Leake sentenced to 30 months prison for $5M ponzi scheme
Former Atlanta Falcons linebacker John Robert Leake has been sentenced to 30 months in federal prison for running a ponzi scheme in which he defrauded victims out of more than $5 million, the U.S. Department of Justice announced. Leake, 43, played two seasons in the NFL from 2005-06 for the Falcons and Green Bay Packers. (Photo by Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images)Getty Images
LOS ANGELES -- Former NFL linebacker John Robert Leake has been sentenced to 2 ½ years in federal prison for running a ponzi scheme in which he defrauded victims out of more than $5 million.
Leake, 43, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge John F. Walter and ordered to pay $5,314,059 in restitution, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a news release. His sentencing comes six months after he pleaded guilty in September 2024 to one count of wire fraud and one count of transactional money laundering.
Leake fraudulently received $8,129,450 from six victims between June 2015 and March 2020, causing them a total loss of $5,314,059, according to DOJ. He solicited money from victims by promising high rates of return on investments in multiple lucrative business ventures, including subletting luxury real estate properties and real estate investing.
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He also told victims he had invested large amounts his own money into the investment opportunities. In addition, Leake provided promissory notes to victims as a promise to repay them at a fixed rate of interest.
However, Leake knew these business ventures were “fabricated and non-existent,” DOJ said in its release. Instead, he used some of the funds to cover his own personal expenses, including gambling expenses, credit card bills, car payments, rent, and more. He also used some of the victims’ money, as well as his own, to pay “interest” and “capital” payments on the promissory notes in an effort to continue his scheme.
Leake, a former collegiate standout linebacker at Clemson, played two seasons in the NFL from 2005-06 for the Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers. He recorded 17 tackles in 25 games across two seasons.