Former Jacksonville Jaguars employee who stole $22 million sentenced to 3 years in jail

March 12 (UPI) -- The former Jacksonville Jaguars employee who stole $22 million over a three year period was sentenced to more than six years in a federal prison and three years of supervised release.

Amit Patel, 31, pleaded guilty to wire fraud and other illegal transactions in December after stealing millions of dollars from the team coffers to live a "life of luxury" that included luxurious items, private jet trips, vacations and other items.

After Patel's sentencing, the Federal Bureau of Investigations' Jacksonville Division said that Patel had "knowingly and wittingly created a deceptive scheme to fund a lavish lifestyle at his employer's expense."

It was claimed that Patel had began a gambling, alcohol and drunk addiction which spiraled out of control as U.S. District Judge Henry Lee Adams Jr. ordered Patel to pay back the Jacksonville Jaguars over $21 million in restitution and ordered that he must attend Gamblers Anonymous meetings.

Patel apologized to those in the courtroom, telling those assembled that he has been sober for more than a year.

"I stand before you embarrassed, shamed, and disappointed by my actions," he said.

"Today's sentencing is a warning to other scam artists: the FBI and our partners will continue to aggressively pursue corporate fraud investigations to protect consumers from bearing the costs associated with criminal activity," Mark Dargis, the Jacksonville Division's Acting Special Agent in Charge, said in a statement after Patel's sentencing.

During court proceedings, a Jaguars team official read a statement to the court saying how Patel had "betrayed us."

"We gave him his dream job. We trusted him. We worked with him. We broke bread with him. We went through a pandemic and the highs and lows of the NFL with him," Megha Parekh, senior vice president and the Jaguars' chief legal officer, said to the court.