April 14, (THEWILL)- A former professional footballer from Uganda has been jailed for 27 months after admitting to defrauding friends, family and other investors of £1.7 million through an elaborate Ponzi scheme. Adrian Kawuba pleaded guilty in December 2023 to wire fraud relating to falsely selling “lucrative investments” in youth sports teams across Africa.
According to US prosecutors, Kawuba’s fraud involved at least 26 fake deals, swindling over £1.7 million from victims who believed they were financing youth football ventures on the continent. However, the disgraced 34-year-old instead spent £625,000 of the funds on luxury goods for himself and used new investments to pay fake “returns” to earlier investors.
Sentencing Kawuba at a court in Massachusetts, US Senior District Judge, William Young, lambasted his “betrayal” of those who had faith in his schemes based on his “personal magnetism”. The judge ordered the fraudster to pay back over £625,000 and forfeit £1.7 million, as well as serve three years of supervised release after his prison sentence.
In a letter to the court, Kawuba admitted making “choices that I knew were wrong” during a “dark period” when his career failed to take off as hoped. “I want to be unequivocally clear: there is no excuse or defence for my actions,” he stated. Prosecutors said despite “family, community, education and economic opportunity, he still chose to steal” from those closest to him.
The case highlights how rogue investors can exploit trusting individuals and personal connections through Ponzi frauds, even those with seemingly credible backstories. Sport-related investment scams remain a prominent issue globally.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
