Ex-NFL player charged with stealing money from Ohio groups
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Former NFL player Reggie Rucker after a May 2013 news conference for Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown, in Cleveland. Rucker, who had roles with two inner-city organizations in Cleveland has been charged in federal court with stealing more than $100,000 from the groups to pay gambling debts and personal expenses.
CLEVELAND » A former NFL player withdrew hundreds of thousands of dollars from the account of an inner-city Cleveland charity to satisfy Las Vegas gambling debts and to pay personal expenses, according to charges filed today in federal court.
The charges against Reggie Rucker, 68, are contained in an information, which indicates Rucker has agreed to plead guilty. Rucker was a wide receiver who played 12 years in the NFL from 1970 to 1981, including seven seasons with the Cleveland Browns. He’s charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of making a false statement to an FBI agent. He is scheduled to be arraigned Feb. 24.
Rucker was executive director for Amer-I-Can Cleveland, a nonprofit group that is an outgrowth of an organization created by Browns Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown in Los Angeles. Rucker also played a lead role with Cleveland Peacemakers Alliance, a coalition of groups that employs outreach workers to quell violence between rival gangs and factions in Cleveland. Amer-I-Can Cleveland is a registered nonprofit; Peacemakers Alliance is not.
According to the information, Rucker solicited foundations, organizations and individuals to make donations and would routinely begin withdrawing money for his personal use after funds were deposited into the Amer-I-Can account. The withdrawals occurred from 2011 to 2015. Rucker used $65,000 in donations to pay off markers at Las Vegas and made $48,000 in ATM withdrawals at casinos in Las Vegas, Cleveland and Tampa, Florida, the information said. Around $35,000 of the casino withdrawals were in 2014.
Rucker attorney Michael Hennenberg said today that Rucker ended his involvement with the two organizations within the last year.
“Reggie has been cooperating with the government for approximately a year,” Hennenberg said. “Reggie accepts responsibility totally for his wrongful conduct and, in addition to his punishment, he will do everything possible to make it right.”
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A spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office in Cleveland said today that the total loss is estimated at around $100,000, but he wouldn’t elaborate. The information said Rucker would make deposits into the Amer-I-Can account using personal funds, loans and gambling proceeds. The deposits helped Rucker prolong his misuse of funds, the information said.
4 responses to “Ex-NFL player charged with stealing money from Ohio groups”
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Gambling debts have always been the downfall of reputable individuals. Us e to shoot craps while in high school and luckily grew out of it upon being drafted into the army. II t took 2 hitches to determine who I really was. Some regret their time in the service, but Imdid enjoyed my enlistments
Addictions bring down the famous and the not famous alike. It is very sad that so many people suffer in families and our society as a whole from the effects of the pushers in white coats who over prescribe mood altering meds, the advertisers who push the beers on tv and other alcoholic drugs, the Las Vegas industry and those who want to avoid raising taxes by sponsoring lotteries.
The occasional bet on an office pool, one or two beers in the hot sun at the back yard barbecue…such moderation would be great for all….too many cannot stop or set bad examples of indulging to excess.
I don’t care if you are ex-NFL, you DO NOT want to rip off Cleveland street gangs.
Gambling has cursed so many people. It is a parasite industry.