Travis Kelce isn’t making headlines only for his skills on the field.
Kelce, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end, was reportedly among investors defrauded by a Ponzi scheme. A Ponzi scheme, also known as a pyramid scheme, “is an investment scam that pays existing investors with money collected from newer investors,” according to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
While Kelce is named among the 64 victims, he is not named in the indictment or the court judgment. Victim impact statements and the amount of money Kelce lost are sealed records, and will not be released to the public at this time.
The defendant in this case, Siddarth Jawahar, is the founder of Texas-based investment firm Swiftarc, which was founded in 2015. Prosecutors said that the firm is at the forefront of this scheme. Kelce and basketball players Tim Hardaway Jr., Gary Harris, and Mason Plumlee were notable individuals listed as investors in the fund, which authorities said was a scam.
Instead of investing the $35 million entrusted to the company, Jawahar took the money from new investors to pay previous investors and used the remaining funds for “extravagant lifestyle expenses, including payments for flights on private planes, stays at luxury hotels, and expensive outings at lavish restaurants.”
Jawahar pleaded guilty to three counts of wire fraud and was sentenced to 11 years in prison. The court also ordered $31.35 million in restitution to the 64 named victims. Kelce has not spoken publicly about the scam.
