It’s been well known that the Washington Commanders organization has been a complete dumpster fire under owner Dan Snyder, but there may now be significant repercussions that Snyder and many others could face after shocking news emerged on Wednesday.
According to ESPN, the U.S. attorney’s office in the Eastern District of Virginia has opened a criminal investigation against the Washington organization, claiming that the Commanders engaged in financial improprieties.
This criminal investigation comes from an inquiry that was triggered by a letter the House Committee on Oversight and Reform sent to the Federal Trade Commission and several attorneys general in April that alleged deceptive business practices from the Commanders. That letter detailed that Snyder “may have withheld as much as $5 million in refundable deposits from season ticket holders” in 2016.
This shocking news comes on the same day that Snyder surprisingly hired Bank of America to explore options for selling the organization, which many believe cannot be a coincidence.
And there goes the other shoe… https://t.co/TjYnJVGKGa
— Rachel Nichols (@Rachel__Nichols) November 2, 2022
And the ownership announced today they are starting the process to sell the team. What a coincidence https://t.co/zkYi0QR08k
— Geoff Schwartz (@geoffschwartz) November 2, 2022
So now we know why they announced a potential sale today. https://t.co/dn75n6PGwN
— Matt Miller (@nfldraftscout) November 2, 2022
YIKES https://t.co/4qEV9SmgP5
— Football (@BostonConnr) November 2, 2022
https://twitter.com/FixYourLife/status/1587930867556499458
Becoming a bit clearer why Snyder announced today the possibility of selling the team https://t.co/eyBoEcp0fQ
— Ben Volin (@BenVolin) November 2, 2022
Team spokesperson Jean Medina provided a statement to ESPN on Wednesday following this shocking news, calling the allegations against the organization “completely untrue.”
“It is not surprising that ESPN is publishing more falsehoods based solely on anonymous sources — given today’s announcement,” the statement said. “…We are confident that, after these agencies have had a chance to review the documents and complete their work, they will come to the same conclusion as the team’s internal review — that these allegations are simply untrue.”
Considering the mountain of evidence and the timing of Dan Snyder’s announcement to potentially sell the team on Wednesday, it certainly seems like there could be some serious criminal charges coming to a number of people within the Washington organization.
[ESPN]
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.