Travis Kelce named as victim in $35 million Ponzi scheme run by illegal immigrant
Travis Kelce has been tagged as a victim in a major Ponzi scheme by prosecutors in a Missouri court, per multiple reports.The Chiefs star tight end was named in court on Tuesday as one of many to be wronged by Siddharth Jawahar, described by the U.S.
Attorney’s Office as an illegal immigrant who was sentenced to 11 years in prison for fraud that took away more than $35 million from investors.The 38-year-old pleaded guilty to three counts of wire fraud in U.S.District Court in St.
Louis in January and was ordered to pay over $31 million in restitution to his victims, per a press release from the U.S.Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Missouri.
Kelce’s losses were not disclosed nor did prosecutors expand on the 36-year-old’s connection to the case.Jawahar ran a Texas-based investment company, Swiftarc Capital LLC, and funneled nearly all his client funds in a single investment, Philip Morris Pakistan (PMP) in 2015.Per the release, when the value of PMP went south, Jawahar did not inform his investors and instead led them to believe he invested their money in a specific company and were making a profit.Yet, of the $35 million, Jawahar invested only about $10 million dating from July 2016 to December 2023.
Rather, Jawahar was known for his expensive taste.He used the money to purchase private jets, stays at luxury hotels, outings at fancy restaurants, memberships at private clubs and upscale apartments in Austin and New York.Swiftarc Capital LLC was one of several additional entities Jawahar used in the multi-million-dollar scheme.
Following his indictment, Jawahar attempted to “coach” a victim into giving a “favorable” statement to the FBI, which investigated the case.He didn’t want his immigration status and finances revealed, going as far as to try to get his sister to wipe his iPhone to hide evidence.Kelce has started what is anticipated to be his 14th and final NFL season.
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