A disgraced former NFL executive, currently serving a 6 1/2-year prison term, is taking aim at FanDuel with a staggering $250 million lawsuit. Amit Patel, who embezzled $22 million from the Jacksonville Jaguars, alleges that the daily fantasy sports giant knowingly enabled his gambling addiction, ignoring its own safeguards and protocols.
According to the lawsuit, filed in a New York federal court, FanDuel turned a blind eye to Patel’s questionable activities, despite being aware of his NFL affiliation and the suspicious nature of his massive wagers. Over the course of several years, Patel wagered a staggering $20 million on daily fantasy sports contests, with FanDuel providing him with over $1.1 million in gambling credits and showering him with enticing offers to bet more.
Patel’s lawyer, Matthew Litt, argues that while his client bears some responsibility for his actions, FanDuel’s aggressive marketing tactics and lack of oversight contributed significantly to his addiction. The lawsuit claims that Patel’s personal host would contact him up to 100 times a day, urging him to place bets, and that the company lavished him with extravagant gifts, including trips to high-profile sporting events.
This lawsuit echoes similar cases brought by compulsive gamblers against casinos and online gambling companies, alleging that they exploited their addictions. However, previous lawsuits have been dismissed, including a 2008 case against seven casinos and a February case against Atlantic City casinos, both of which were thrown out due to a lack of legal duty to intervene.
FanDuel has declined to comment on the pending litigation, but the case is likely to spark a heated debate about the responsibility of gambling companies to protect vulnerable customers.
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