New Jersey man faces federal charges for selling three Tom Brady Super Bowl Patriots rings

Federal officials have filed charges against a man who claimed he was a member of the New England Patriots and was able to use that identity to get three Super Bowl rings.

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Scott Spina, 24, will be pleading guilty in the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles to a count of mail fraud, three counts of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft, the U.S. Department of Justice announced.

The rings were “family and friends” versions of the Super Bowl mementos and were engraved with Tom Brady’s last name, court documents said.

“By pretending to be a New England Patriots player, the defendant was able to get Super Bowl rings from the company that issued them. But in offering the rings for sale, he was also selling their connection to Tom Brady — a story that simply did not hold up on close scrutiny,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Erik M. Silber said, according to NBC News.

Officials said Spina bought a ring from a player who had left the team. Law enforcement said Spina paid for the ring with at least one bad check but sold the ring for $63,000. Along with the ring, he found out that he could purchase a smaller version of the Super Bowl 51 rings that are meant to go to players’ friends and family. Law enforcement alleged Spina used the player identification from the person he purchased the original ring from and ordered three smaller versions with “Brady” engraved on the side, the Department of Justice said.

Spina said they were going to be gifts for Brady’s child. Brady had no connection to the order and the rings were not authorized by the former Patriots quarterback.

Spina then sold the rings for $81,500 to the same person to whom he had sold the original player ring, saying that the rings were given to Brady’s nephews. The buyer backed out from the deal and Spina eventually sold the three rings to an auction house for $100,000, which sold them in Feb. 2018 with one of the rings going for $337,219, the Department of Justice said.

Spina will enter the guilty plea next month, The Associated Press reported. Once he does, he faces a maximum of 92 years in federal prison. The jail sentence will likely be less once a judge reviews federal guidelines. He also will be expected to pay restitution to the player who originally sold the ring.

The FBI’s art crime team investigated the case, NBC News reported. Spina’s attorney did not respond to NBC News’ request for comment on the case.

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