SACRAMENTO, Calif. — A former executive with the Sacramento Kings has been sentenced to seven years in prison for stealing millions of dollars from the NBA team, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office Eastern District of California.
Jeffrey David, 44, of Columbus, Ohio, will serve time for wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, said U.S. attorney McGregor Scott in a press release.
"David used his high-ranking position with the Sacramento Kings to deceive businesses across the country into sending him millions of dollars," Scott said in the release. "The brazen scheme involved forgeries, stolen corporate executive identities, money laundering, and even instructing a former colleague to destroy evidence."
In a press release, the Sacramento Kings thanked McGregor Scott, the U.S Attorney for the Eastern District of California, the staff of Assistant U.S. Attorneys and paralegals, the Special Agents of the FBI and the U.S. Department of Justice, "for taking fast and effective action to recover the stolen assets and provide full financial restitution to the Sacramento Kings while swiftly bringing Jeff David to justice.”
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While chief revenue officer for the Sacramento Kings between October 2012 and July 2016, David defrauded companies by representing to them that payments they made were going to the Kings, when the payments were actually going to bank accounts he controlled under the name Sacramento Sports Partners LLC.
In December 2018, David admitted to forging the team president's signature to divert sponsorship payments to the accounts. He stole approximately $13.4 million from five companies in California and elsewhere, according to the release.
"Mr. David violated the trust of his employer and clients, siphoning millions from agreements to fund purchases he could not otherwise afford," Scott said.
David used the money to buy and remodel real estate in Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach. He also wrote checks to family members, bought a private jet membership and racked up substantial credit card debt, according to the press release.
The U.S. Justice Department forfeited the properties and other assets held by David to repay the Sacramento Kings. The team has received over $13.2 million in restitution.
Davis is expected to surrender for his sentence on Aug 20, 2019.