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New Jersey Man Sentenced to Federal Prison for Tom Brady Super Bowl Ring Fraud

A New Jersey man is facing a three-year stay in federal prison for his involvement in selling fraudulent Tom Brady Super Bowl rings in 2017.

Scott V. Spina, 25, started the scheme by defrauding a former New England Patriots player out of his Super Bowl LI championship ring, per People. Spina used a bad check to purchase the ring for $63,000. He then sold the ring to a “well-known broker of championship rings,” the U.S. Department of Justice said.

When Spina obtained the rings, he also received information that allowed the ex-player to purchase Super Bowl rings for family and friends. These rings are smaller than the players’ rings.

Per court documents, “Spina then called the Ring Company, fraudulently identified himself as [the former player], and started ordering three family and friend Super Bowl LI rings with the name ‘Brady’ engraved on each one, which he falsely represented were gifts for the baby of quarterback Tom Brady. Defendant Spina intended to obtain the three rings by fraud and to sell them at a substantial profit.”

Tom Brady and His Team Shut the Scheme Down

Spina then attempted to sell the three rings to the same Orange County broker he sold the first Super Bowl ring to. The broker, however, grew suspicious and backed out of the purchase. Spina persisted, selling the rings to Goldin Auctions for $100,000. Goldin Auctions labeled the resale as “authorized by Tom Brady.” One of the rings sold for a whopping $337,219.

By then, Brady and his representatives had caught on to the scheme. They contacted Goldin Auctions and denied that the rings had any connection to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback. Spina has been ordered to pay $63,000 in restitution to the former Patriots player. Goldin Auctions, meanwhile, rescinded the auction and issued the buyer a full refund.

“He accepts responsibility for his actions,” Spina’s attorney Thomas Ambrosio, said Tuesday, per The New York Times. “He is disappointed in the fact that he has to go back to prison.”