Former Philadelphia Eagles running back Wendell Smallwood Jr. has pleaded guilty federal fraud charges after he was accused of filing fraudulent tax returns and applications for hundreds of thousands of dollars COVID-19 pandemic relief programs.
The signed settlement was approved by a federal judge in Delaware on Friday. Smallwood, of Mullica Hill, New Jersey, will be sentenced in May on three counts of fraud.
Smallwood’s attorney, Mark Sheppard, told the Philadelphia Inquirer that Smallwood appeared in court Friday “and outright took full responsibility for his actions.” He recognizes that this is just the first step in trying to make amends with the government and those closest to him will continue to do so.”
Smallwood, 30, was originally charged in October.
He filed false tax returns for himself and others in 2021 and 2022, reimbursing himself about $110,000, prosecutors said.
He also used what prosecutors said were defunct or recently registered companies and provided false information about the scope of their operations, such as start dates, amounts of revenue, expenses and number of employees. Some were under his name, while others were under the names of others.
In one scheme, Smallwood used false information when he applied for loans from the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program for three companies under his name. The U.S. Small Business Administration has approved loans of just over $46,000, prosecutors said.
In a separate scheme, Smallwood submitted fraudulent Paycheck Protection Program applications in the names of at least 13 other people, prosecutors said. A bank disbursed loans worth nearly $270,000, with Smallwood receiving kickbacks in exchange for preparing and submitting the applications, prosecutors said.
The Eagles drafted Smallwood out of West Virginia University in 2016. The Delaware native played three seasons for the Eagles before spending three more seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers and the team now known as the Washington Commanders.