Ex-Jaguars Employee Amit Patel Gets 6.5 Years for Stealing $22M

After pleading guilty to stealing $22 million from the Jacksonville Jaguars for gambling and daily fantasy purposes, Amit Patel was sentenced to 6.5 years in prison.

ESPN's Michael DiRocco said that Patel was sentenced Tuesday to pay the Jaguars $21.1 million in restitution and attend Gamblers Anonymous meetings.

Alex King, Patel's attorney, requested probation to one year in prison, while federal prosecutors wanted a seven-year sentence for wire fraud and illicit monetary transaction.

"We gave him his dream job," Jaguars senior vice president and chief legal officer Megha Parekh said when reading a statement from the team. "We trusted him. We worked with him. Broke bread with him. We went through a pandemic and the highs and lows of the NFL with him. He betrayed us.

"We take no joy in his punishment. Make no mistake, Amit broke our hearts."

Patel was the only Jaguars employee to participate in these activities and had no football information, the team said.

DiRocco said Patel ran the Jaguars' virtual credit card operation and misappropriated $22 million over 3.5 years. He sent $20 million to FanDuel and $1 million to DraftKings while spending money on Apple gadgets and private jet travel, according to court records.

NFL players and staff cannot gamble or play daily fantasy.