Man who posed as Tom Brady in Super Bowl ring scam pleads guilty

Scott V. Spina Jr of Roseland, New Jersey posed as NFL GOAT Tom Brady since 2017 to trade Super Bowl rings pleaded guilty in a federal court on Wednesday. The 24-year-old entered pleas to wire fraud, mail fraud and aggravated identity theft. 

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Spina claimed that the rings were gifts to Tom Brady’s family. In 2017, he bought a 2016 Super Bowl ring from a New England Patriots player who was no longer associated with the franchise. The New Jersey citizen sold the ring for  $63,000 to a Southern California broker and used the player’s information to contact the ring company and order three slightly smaller rings designed for friends and family, prosecutors said.

Brady won seven Super Bowls in his 22-year NFL career, the latest in 2020 with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 

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The rings Spina sold in 2017 had ‘Brady’ engraved on them and he claimed they were gifts for the former New England quarterback’s baby although Brady never authorized their purchase, authorities said.

Scott Spina than tried to sell the rings  to the Southern California broker for $81,500. He claimed that Brady had bought them for three nephews, but the deal fell through when the broker wasn’t able to confirm that Brady had any nephews, prosecutors said.

Spina then sold the rings to a New Jersey auction house for $100,000. At a 2018 auction, one ring sold for more than $337,000.

Also read: Tom Brady retires: Stats and records that make him the NFL GOAT

Tom Brady on Tuesday announced his retirement from the NFL. During his time, more than two decades, in the league, the 44-year-old Brady won the most Super Bowls and was the MVP five times. He leads the league in yards passing (84,520) and TDs (624). 

Brady led the NFL in yards passing (5,316), touchdowns (43), completions (485) and attempts (719) in 2021, but the Buccaneers lost at home to the Los Angeles Rams in the divisional round.