Authorities have accused former Alabama defensive lineman Luther Davis of impersonating three NFL players as part of a nearly $20 million fraud scheme. According to a criminal information (CI) filing, Davis, along with a partner, C.J. Evins, “obtained at least thirteen fraudulent loans totaling more than $19,845,000.”
According to the U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Georgia, Luther Davis even went so far as to wear disguises, including wigs and makeup, during loan closings.
David and Evans obtained fictitious driver’s licenses and other identification documents in the players’ names, according to the filing. They would then contact loan brokers with bank statements for companies allegedly run by the players, fake personal financial statements, and Secretary of State documents. To complete the deception, Davis frequently wore a wig and showed up at virtual loan closings dressed as the athlete he was pretending to be.
Sources have identified the three NFL players Davis allegedly impersonated
The Guardian reports that Davis and Evins pretended to be a player whose initial D.N. was identified in the CI document to obtain a $4.025 million loan through Sure Sports from Aliya Sports. According to sources, they identified that player as tight end David Njoku.
A player with the initials XM received a second fraudulent loan of $4.35 million from Aliya, according to the CI filing. Sources have now identified that player as Xavier McKinney of the Green Bay Packers. Previously, a lawsuit filed in March had alleged that an impostor posing as McKinney tricked a lender into providing the loan.
A $3.3 million loan through All Pro Capital Funding, arranged by Sure Sports for a player with the initial MP, is the third mentioned in the CI filing. According to sources, the NFL player impersonated in that loan is quarterback Michael Penix Jr. of the Atlanta Falcons.
Other than having their identities used without their knowledge, none of the NFL players participated in the alleged scheme. The Guardian reports that prosecutors charged Davis with aggravated identity theft and conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and that he plans to plead guilty later this month.
“Beginning no later than in or around May 2023 and continuing through in or about October 2024, the defendant, Luther Davis, and CJ Evins, executed a scheme to fraudulently obtain millions of dollars in loans from multiple lenders, including, but not limited to, Aliya Sports and All Pro Capital Funding, by impersonating professional football players and falsely claiming those players were seeking multi-million dollar Loans,” federal prosecutors wrote.
Luther Davis was one of Nick Saban’s first big recruits at the University of Alabama, but was later implicated in a scandal involving five SEC players who received impermissible benefits.