The U.S. attorney’s office in the Eastern District of Virginia has opened a criminal investigation into allegations that the Washington Commanders engaged in financial improprieties, per a recent report from ESPN.
The investigation was triggered by a letter the House Committee on Oversight and Reform sent to the Federal Trade Commission back in April. The committee revealed it had found evidence of “deceptive business practices” over at least the last decade — including withholding ticket revenue from visiting teams and refundable deposits from fans.
In 2016, the Washington organization — led by team owner Dan Snyder — allegedly retained up to $5 million from 2,000 season-ticket holders and concealed shareable revenue from the league.
A former employee also testified in front of Congress claiming the organization had two separate financial books to hide its violations.
The NFL world took to Twitter to react to this new investigation.
“Keep a foot on his neck even after he’s gone. he don’t deserve a moments peace,” one fan wrote.
“Lock him up!!!” another added.
“Take the team from him, take his yacht from him, take everything from him (and prison would be nice, too),” another said.
Earlier today, Snyder reportedly hired Bank of America to explore options for selling the team.