Art Schlichter apparently promised Super Bowl tickets, but took the money for betting instead. Image: Flickr / chiropractic / CC-BY-SA
Art Schlichter is a former Baltimore Colts quarterback who is making a career of fraud. The admitted gambling addict reportedly stole millions in order to place bets on the Super Bowl. The Art Schlichter Super Bowl ticket probe will likely result in criminal charges.
Art Schlichter Super Bowl ticket probe
Art Schlichter has allegedly had a scam running for the last few years in which he offers an “investment opportunity.” The investment he offers involves buying and selling tickets to major football games. This scam apparently expanded to include promising Super Bowl tickets to investors who gave him large amounts of money. These people, however, ended up stranded in Dallas with no tickets to Super Bowl XLV and no way to find Art Schlichter.
Schlichter and gambling addiction
Art Schlichter is an admitted gambling addict who has spent time in about 45 different jails and prisons since 1994. Reportedly, the millions of dollars he collected in the Super Bowl ticket scam were spent on bets on that game and others. Last time Schlichter got out of jail, he said he was “more sorry than people will ever know.” When asked about these latest accusations, Schlichter reportedly sent text messages to the Columbus Dispatch that:
tried to portray himself as a suffering gambling addict who wants to assist other gambling addicts.
“It will help a lot of people,” Schlichter said in a text message. “This addiction is a [expletive].”
Not all Super Bowl tickets were good
The Super Bowl ticket probe stemmed from the fact that hundreds of people Schlicter had promised Super Bowl tickets to did not get into the game. These were not the only people in Dallas who did not get into the Super Bowl. Just hours before the game, safety officials deemed more than 400 seats in the stadium unsafe and turned away individuals holding tickets. The league has promised to reimburse 300 percent of the ticket cost for those 400 ticket holders, but many are saying that is simply not enough to cover their costs.
