Former Atlanta Falcons linebacker gets prison time for Ponzi scheme
ATLANTA - 2006: John Leake of the Atlanta Falcons poses for his 2006 NFL headshot at photo day in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES - A former Atlanta Falcons player was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison after being found guilty of running a real estate and gold mine Ponzi scheme.
What we know:
John Robert Leake, 43, of Plano, Texas, was accused of defrauding people out of more than $5 million by promising high rates of return on investments into luxury real estate and gold mines in Alaska and Ghana from June 2015 to March 2020.
The U.S. Department of Justice said Leake was able to convince his victims to invest large amounts of money "by lying that he had invested large amounts of his own money in the purported business ventures he promoted. Leake rarely invested his own money into them."
According to the DOJ, he would then use their money to pay his own bills, rent, gambling expenses and other personal affairs.
The former Falcons linebacker pleaded guilty in September 2024 to one count of wire fraud, and one count of transactional money laundering.
Leake has been ordered to pay $5,314,059 in restitution.
Dig deeper:
Prior to playing for the Falcons in 2005 and 2006, Leake was a linebacker for the Clemson Tigers from 2000 to 2003.
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The Source: The information in this article was reported by the United States Attorney's Office in the Central District of California.