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Amit Patel, Who Stole $22M from Jaguars, Details FBI Probe, Prison Sentence, Recovery

Joseph Zucker@@JosephZuckerX.com LogoFeatured Columnist IVMarch 18, 2024

JACKSONVILLE, FL - SEPTEMBER 24: A general view of the Jaguars Logo at mid-field before the Jacksonville Jaguars host the Miami Dolphins on Thursday Night Football at TIAA Bank Field on September 24, 2020 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Don Juan Moore/Getty Images)
Don Juan Moore/Getty Images

Former Jacksonville Jaguars employee Amit Patel gave his first public interview since pleading guilty in December to embezzling more than $22 million from the team.

"I'm dealing with the consequences of something that happened a year and a half ago," he said to The Athletic's Katie Strang. "I've been a completely different person since then through my recovery. I'm dealing with something that's happened in the past when I was a different person."

A judge sentenced Patel to six years and six months in federal prison last Tuesday. Investigators said the 31-year-old used the Jaguars' virtual credit card on numerous purchases that didn't relate to his job including personal travel, online gambling, multiple vehicles and a condo in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.

Patel told Strang he "was battling with a secret addiction that nobody knew about."

"Everyone thought I was doing great, dandy," he said. "You know, on Instagram they see you having fun, you're with your friends and family, but there's a mental demon inside."

By the time the Jaguars hired him in 2018, he had been gambling broadly for years and moved into betting on sporting events. He first took funds from the organization in September 2019 to help make up for personal gambling losses.

"I mean, the devil inside me is like let me just deposit $25,000 from the card," he said. "I'll turn it into $50,000. I'll put the $25,000 back."

Patel told Strang he thought for years the Jaguars would uncover his scheme, and it became clear it had finally happened in February 2023 when he was asked to come to the office of chief financial officer Mark Sirota and saw officials from the team's security and human resources department trailing him.

Strang detailed what happened during the meeting.

"When the NFL security team asked where Patel got the money to place the bets they had discovered, he lied. He said it was from family wealth and cryptocurrency," she wrote. "When they asked whether they could have access to his phone and computer, he looked to the Jaguars' lawyer for advice, only to realize the lawyer was there to protect the team, not him. He handed his devices over and the lawyer took him for a walk around the concourse."

Strang reported Patel entered rehab to deal with his alcohol and drug use along with addressing his gambling addiction. He was in treatment when the FBI began its investigation of his misdeeds, and the treatment will continue while he's in federal custody.