Add Page Six on Google Travis Kelce was reportedly named as a victim in a $35 million Ponzi scheme in a Missouri court on Tuesday.
Prosecutors mentioned the NFL star’s name as one of the people duped by the mastermind of the scheme, Siddharth Jawahar, according to outlets KMOV and WENG.
Jawahar, 38, was sentenced to 11 years in prison, according to a press release from the US Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Missouri.
He pleaded guilty to three counts of wire fraud in January and was ordered to pay $31.35 million in restitution to his victims, the release said.
Kelce, 36, was an investor in Swiftarc Venture Labs Fund, created by the investment company Swiftarc Capital LLC, which Jawahar co-founded, according to a 2021 Forbes article.
Page Six has reached out to Kelce’s rep for comment.
Want more celebrity and pop culture news? Start your day with Page Six Daily.
In 2015, Jawahar began investing client funds in a single investment, Philip Morris Pakistan, for Swiftarc Capital LLC, which was based in Texas, per the release.
But when PMP’s value began to decline, Jawahar allegedly lied to investors, falsely claimed that they were making profits.
From about July 2016 through December 2023, Jawahar took in more than $35 million from Swiftarc investors, but he invested only about $10 million, the release said.
The businessman allegedly used the money from investors to pay back older investors and fund his “extravagant lifestyle,” which included “travel on private jets, stays at luxury hotels, a luxury apartment in Austin and New York City, memberships at multiple private clubs across the country, spending sprees at clothing stores and expensive outings at fancy restaurants.”
After he was indicted, Jawahar tried to “coach a victim into giving a favorable statement to the FBI,” according to the release.
He also allegedly lied about his immigration status and finances and tryied to get his sister to remotely wipe his iPhone to hide evidence.
Your voice matters. Discussions are moderated for civility. Read our guidelines here
Community Guidelines Welcome to the Page Six Community! Our community is about connecting people through open and thoughtful conversations. We want our readers to share their views and exchange ideas in a safe space.
In order to do so, we've created a simple set of rules that will improve your experience.
Your post will/might be rejected if it contains:
User accounts will/might be blocked if we notice:
Thanks for reading our community guidelines. Don't forget, freedom of speech is not the freedom of reach!
