Ex-Packers player sentenced, Ponzi scheme defrauded $5M+
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LOS ANGELES - A former NFL linebacker who briefly played for the Green Bay Packers has been sentenced to federal prison for running a Ponzi scheme that defrauded victims of more than $5 million.
Big picture view:
According to federal prosecutors, 43-year-old John Leake lied to victims that he was involved in a "lucrative" real estate investment, gold mines in Alaska and Ghana, and other ventures – promising high rates of return on investment.
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In addition to two-and-a-half years in federal prison, Leake was ordered to pay $5.3 million in restitution. He pleaded guilty in September 2024 to one count of wire fraud and one count of transactional money laundering.
Local perspective:
Leake totaled four tackles in three games for the Packers in 2005. He played the majority of his two-season career, 22 games, with the Atlanta Falcons.
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Dig deeper:
From June 2015 to March 2020, prosecutors said Leake falsely claimed that he was participating in multiple lucrative business ventures, including subletting luxury real estate properties and real estate investing. Leake offered his victims the opportunity to loan him funds for him to invest in those purported ventures.
Prosecutors said Leake knew the investment opportunities were often fabricated and non-existent. Leake duped victims by lying that he had invested large amounts of his own money in the purported ventures he promoted, but he rarely invested his own money into them.
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Leake also fraudulently offered to personally guarantee return of the victims’ loans and provided them promissory notes, federal prosecutors said. In fact, Leake lacked sufficient personal assets and income to repay his victims.
Once in receipt of the victim’s money, prosecutors said Leake – without the victims’ knowledge or consent – used some of the funds to pay his own personal expenses, including credit card bills, car payments, rent, and gambling expenses. To continue his scam, Leake also used some of the victims’ money to lull victims by making purported "interest" and "capital" payments on the promissory notes. Leake used a small amount of his personal funds to make those payments.
In total, Leake fraudulently received approximately $8,129,450 from six victims, causing them a total loss of approximately $5,314,059.
The Source: Information in this report is from the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Central District of California and Pro Football Reference.