Will Allen, a former National Football League cornerback, was charged with fraud by the SEC for allegedly running a Ponzi scheme that bilked investors out of $31 million. Allen allegedly worked with Susan Daub to create a number of companies, including Boston-based Capital Financial Partners, offering loans to professional athletes.

Allen and Daub allegedly told athletes they could receive interest of up to 18% from Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, National Hockey League, and NFL players. They marketed the business as giving athletes access to at least $75,000 loans in the off-season or early in the season, when they may be strapped for cash based on their contracts.

Between 2012 and early 2015, Allen and Daub raised $31 million from at least 40 investors but allegedly misled them about the terms of the loans. They used investor funds to pay for personal expenses, including charges at pawn shops, casinos, and nightclubs. The SEC accuses Allen of paying some of his investors from funds received from later investors instead of from legitimate business income.

According to Paul Levenson, who runs the SEC’s Boston office that investigated the case, “As in any Ponzi scheme, the appearance of a successful investment was only an illusion sustained by lies.”

Allen was drafted in the first round of the 2001 NFL draft out of Syracuse University by the New York Giants. He played five years with the Giants and five years with the Miami Dolphins before playing his last season in 2012 for the New England Patriots.

If you or someone you know has lost money as a result of an investment or Ponzi scheme, please contact Richard Frankowski at 888-741-7503 to discuss your potential legal remedies or complete the contact form.