Jailed NFL Embezzler Hits FanDuel With $250M Suit For Gambling Exploitation

Lawsuit alleges rep contacted Amit Patel up to 100 times daily, ignored AML protocols

Last updated: October 1, 2024

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The former Jacksonville Jaguars employee who stole $22 million from the team to fund his gambling habit is looking to recoup more than 10 times that number in a lawsuit filed Tuesday against FanDuel.

Amit Patel has filed a $250 million suit against the company, claiming the sportsbook operator “exploited” his gambling addiction and turned the other cheek when it came to both responsible gaming and anti-money laundering (AML) protocols.

The suit, filed in the Southern District of New York, was first reported by ESPN.com.

Patel deposited over $20 million at FanDuel, largely using the pilfered funds to play daily fantasy sports.

“Defendants actively and intentionally targeted and preyed on Plaintiff with incentives, credits, and gifts to create, nurture, expedite, and/or exacerbate his addiction with the only possible outcome that he would ultimately hit rock bottom,” Patel’s attorney, Matthew Litt, wrote in the suit.

According to the article, FanDuel supplied Patel with $1.1 million in credits, along with Super Bowl accommodations, a junket to the College Football Playoff championship game, and trips to both the 2021 and 2022 Masters.

based on the article this is a failure by Fanduel in 2 key areas:

1. not identifying Source of Funds for the player

20m in deposits is abnormal and will raise flags – you'd usually ask for bank statements way before this point (maybe even at 10-20k in deposits) to get clarity… https://t.co/Epsnyxlp23
— Dillon Borgida (@dillonborg3) October 1, 2024

Filed from jail

Patel — who is currently serving a 6½-year sentence after pleading guilty in March 2024 to stealing the money — is asking for compensatory and punitive damages.

He was charged with wire fraud and illegal monetary transactions, copping to thieving $22,221,454.40 from the Jaguars over a nearly-four-year period while he was employed by the team, running the team’s virtual credit card program.

In the suit filed Monday, it’s alleged Patel’s VIP host, Brett Krause, contacted Patel as many as 100 times in a day and asked him why he wasn’t gambling on days Patel sat on the sidelines.

The suit also alleges Krause knew that AML protocol was being ignored.

Attorneys representing Krause declined to comment to ESPN, as did FanDuel.

“The goal of the suit is a fair apportionment of responsibility among all responsible parties,” Litt said in a statement to ESPN. “The suit certainly does not contend that Amit is blameless. But right now, Amit is facing 100% of the consequences for what happened while FanDuel is facing none — despite FanDuel’s very active role in Amit’s gambling disorder. The objective is not just to balance things out in Amit’s case, but to stop FanDuel from actively enticing addicted gamblers in the future.”

Additionally, the suit states FanDuel shouldn’t have been allowing Patel to play in the first place, as he was an employee of an NFL team.

“Defendants knew, through Krause, that the Plaintiff worked for a National Football League team and was not permitted to gamble on the National Football League,” the suit continues.

Patel himself is facing a $66.6 million lawsuit filed against him by the Jaguars for damages. The team had previously asked FanDuel to repay Patel’s losses to the franchise.