Travis Kelce has been identified as one of the high-profile victims of a multimillion-dollar investment fraud scheme in the United States.
According to NBC News, the NFL star and husband of Taylor Swift was among the investors defrauded by Siddharth Jawahar, who was sentenced to 11 years in prison after pleading guilty to running what prosecutors described as a Ponzi scheme.
Travis’ name came up during Siddharth’s sentencing on September 15, when a prosecutor briefly mentioned him among the man’s many high-profile victims.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri, U.S. District Judge Zachary Bluestone ordered Siddharth to pay $31 million (around ₱1.9 billion) in restitution to investors he defrauded between 2016 and 2023.
Siddharth pleaded guilty in January to three counts of wire fraud. Federal prosecutors also described him as undocumented.
At the center of the case was Swiftarc Capital LLC, a Texas-based investment company that Siddharth operated. Prosecutors said he used a classic Ponzi scheme, taking money from new investors to pay earlier investors while also funding an extravagant lifestyle.
Travis’ connection to the company dates back to his reported investment in the Swiftarc Venture Labs Fund, which was created by Swiftarc Capital LLC. People Magazine cited a 2021 Forbes article that identified Travis as an investor in the fund.
Despite his name being mentioned during the sentencing, authorities did not disclose further details about how Travis was affected by the alleged scheme or the amount he may have invested.
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The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri likewise did not provide additional information about Travis in its press release on the case.
Meanwhile, Siddharth’s attorney declined to comment on his client’s connection to Travis. He described Siddharth as a “very good man” who “made some very serious mistakes and is taking ownership of all of it.”
Travis and his representatives have yet to respond to requests for comment.