Investment firm leader gets 11 years for Ponzi scheme that bilked dozens, including Travis Kelce

ST. LOUIS (AP) — The creator of a Texas-based investment company has been sentenced to 11 years in federal prison for his role in a Ponzi scheme that prosecutors say bilked 64 victims, including Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.

U.S. District Judge Zachary Bluestone sentenced Siddharth Jawahar, 38, on Tuesday and ordered him to pay $31.35 million in restitution to victims. Jawahar’s attorney did not immediately respond to a voicemail requesting comment.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri said between July 2016 and December 2023, Jawahar took in more than $35 million from investors in his company, Swiftarc Capital LLC, but only invested about $10 million of that amount.

Instead, prosecutors said, he used money from new investors to repay older investors and to fund an extravagant lifestyle including luxury apartments in New York City and Austin, Texas, private jet travel and expensive outings.

St. Louis news station KMOV-TV reported that prosecutors said in court that Kelce was among the victims, but they did not elaborate. A 2021 Forbes article said Kelce invested in a fund established by Jawahar’s company Swiftarc.

Robert Patrick, a spokesperson with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri, said there were 64 victims total, but declined to answer questions about Kelce’s connection to the case. Kelce’s spokespeople did not immediately respond to emails requesting comment.

Jawahar was indicted by a grand jury in 2023 and pleaded guilty in January to three counts of wire fraud.

Jawahar is from India and was living in the U.S. without legal status since 2005, according to court documents. Prosecutors say that after his indictment, Jawahar tried to coach a victim into giving a favorable statement to the FBI, that he lied about his immigration status and tried to get a relative to remotely wipe his iPhone in order to hide evidence.