Back in March, it was announced that Los Angeles Lakers point guard Lonzo Ball was cutting ties with Alan Foster, a co-founder of his family’s Big Baller Brand. The decision came amid reports that Foster had embezzled money from the family and that he had a criminal past that had landed him in prison for similar crimes.
Now, Tania Ganguli of the LA Times reports that Foster is being investigated by the FBI.
The FBI is investigating whether the longtime business manager of Lakers point guard Lonzo Ball and his family defrauded them of millions of dollars, according to two law enforcement officials.
Authorities say the investigation is focused on allegations included in a lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court this month by Lonzo Ball and Big Baller Brand. The suit alleges Foster took more than $1.5 million out of the company’s bank accounts and accepted “substantial undisclosed referral fees” from at least eight loans he arranged on behalf of the company.
The fallout from the scandal led to Lonzo deleting all photos of himself in BBB gear off his social media and hinting to the possibility of signing with Nike. Until now, Lonzo did not have a shoe deal with any of the major sneaker brands. The young point guard has also hired a new agent in recent weeks.
According to the LA Times’ report, Foster was behind the previously reported surgery that Lonzo had planned without the Lakers’ approval. The franchise threatened to void his contract if he went through with it, eventually convincing him not to.
Ganguli reports that there is no clear timeline of when the investigation was started but that one of her sources has suggested that it has been ongoing for two months.
Lonzo and his father, LaVar Ball, have not made any comments regarding this latest news.
