Mitchell to be arraigned in fraud case

PHILADELPHIA, March 20 (UPI) -- The arraignment of former Philadelphia Eagles' wide receiver Freddie "FredEx" Mitchell on federal tax fraud charges is scheduled for later this week.

Surrendering to authorities in Orlando March 12, Mitchell was to be arraigned Thursday, with Richard Walls and Jamie Russ-Walls, both of Bensalem, Pa.

They are accused of filing tax returns on behalf of non-existent businesses and claiming large financial losses, court documents say.

Mitchell also recruited other professional athletes to use Walls' tax-return business, which allegedly prepared fraudulent tax returns and arranged for partial tax refunds to be diverted into bank accounts held by Mitchell and Walls, the Philadelphia Daily News reported Tuesday.

In a case mentioned in the court documents, an unnamed athlete received a $1 million refund, while a fraudulent document was submitted requesting an additional $638,000 to be deposited in Walls' account and $280,000 in Mitchell's.

Mitchell was the Eagles' first-round draft pick in 2001 and played on the team for four years.