Ex-Jaguar employee accused of using more than $22 million in team funds to buy an apartment, a Tesla and a $95,000 watch.

Jacksonville, Florida – A former Jacksonville Jaguars employee is accused of using the company’s virtual credit card software to steal more than $22 million and spend it on personal purchases. Those purchases included two cars, cryptocurrency and lavish vacations, according to court documents obtained by News4JAX.

According to a seven-page federal filing filed by an organization referred to as “Business A,” Amit Patel worked for the organization and helped prepare monthly financial statements, oversaw departmental budgets and performed other administrative duties.

Company A is not named Jaguars in the document, but Jaguars has confirmed it is The athlete It’s unnamed work in the court file. Patel is listed in the Jaguar 2022 media guide within Finance and Business Planning as Director of Financial Planning and Analysis.

Patel had access to the Jaguars’ virtual credit card (VCC) to make work-related purchases or cover work-related expenses, the federal document said. It was not intended for personal use, the document said.

Patel, according to the filing, was the only person to participate in the program, which began in October 2019.

Patel is accused of spending just over $22,221,000 in fraudulent VCC transactions from September 2019 to February 2023, when he was fired, the document said.

The lawsuit accuses Patel of using the money to gamble online, buy a condo in Ponte Vedra Beach, and pay for travel expenses for himself and his friends, which include private jets, luxury hotel stays, and private home rentals.

The document says Patel also purchased a Tesla Model 3 and a Nissan pickup truck, hired a criminal defense attorney, purchased cryptocurrency, electronics, sports memorabilia, a country club membership, spa treatments, tickets to concerts and sporting events, home furnishings, and $95,000. He watches.

News4JAX has reached out to the Jaguars for a response, but we have yet to hear back.

According to the filing, Patel covered his tracks while working with the team by not accurately reporting his virtual credit card transactions and instead creating integration files containing erroneous entries that he emailed to the team’s accounting department. She says he also found legitimate transactions and copied them.

Patel is charged with wire fraud and illegal cash transactions. He chose to be charged with the information, waiving the indictment.