A New York resident has been sentenced to 15 months in federal prison for wire fraud after he defrauded sports fans across the country, including in Wisconsin, by selling non-existent tickets to various sporting events.
Nikhil Mahtani, 28, began placing ads for sporting event tickets on Craigslist in January of 2019, according to a plea agreement filed as part of the case. He placed approximately 1,100 ads for different events held across the country and received approximately $120,000 from over 100 victims.
The New York Police Department’s Fraud Unit, which led the investigation into the claims of fraud, was able to link the ads to an IP address and telephone number registered to the home of Mahtani’s mother.
The ads claimed to offer high-end tickets and luxury box suites to NFL, NBA and other professional sporting events around the country. Several people in Wisconsin fell victim to Mahtani's scam, including some seeking tickets during the Milwaukee Bucks run to the NBA championship in 2021.
In June of 2021, a De Pere resident sent $600 via Zelle to a “Sherina Mahtani” for executive suite tickets and VIP parking to a Bucks playoff game. The customer was told the tickets would be available for pickup through Ticketmaster, but the tickets did not exist.
In May of 2021, an employee of a small business located in Milwaukee responded to a Craigslist ad for executive suite tickets to a game between the Bucks and Brooklyn Nets. The parties agreed on a price of $1,250. When the woman and her fellow co-workers showed up for the game, they found out the tickets did not exist.
Mahtani is also charged with defrauding a Shorewood resident in July of 2021. That person paid $1,000 for executive suite tickets to a Bucks playoff game via Venmo, but never received the tickets.
At a sentencing hearing, Senior United States District Judge
William Griesbach noted the "serious nature of the crime and the need to deter Mahtani and others from engaging in this type of fraud," according to a press release from the Department of Justice.
Griesbach rejected Mahtani’s request for probation noting that this was not a “crime of impulse,” but rather a “systematic victimization” of sports fans who had their hearts set on attending a variety of professional sporting events including
Green Bay Packers and Milwaukee Bucks games.
Mahtani was also ordered to pay $88,000 in restitution to his victims. He will spend three years on supervised releases following completion of his prison sentence.
