Former UT Kicker Nabbed in Alleged Bond & Art Ponzi Scheme
A detail from "The Sorcerer of Hiva Oa," a painting by Gauguin. Feds say Erxleben fraudulently solicited money to verify its authenticity on behalf of buyers.wikipaintings.org
Former University of Texas football player Russell Erxleben is in federal custody.
The Dripping Springs resident was arrested this morning and accused of running a Ponzi scheme that generated more than $2 million, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas.
An eight-count federal grand jury indictment alleges that Erxleben used several companies to promote fraudulent investments, including one in post World War One German government gold bonds. Another of the alleged investments involved an early 20th-century French artist Paul Gauguin.
Most of the charges carry a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. Erxleben entered UT in 1975. He went on to play in the NFL starting in 1979.
