Business

Jocks got socked in ‘scam’

Dozens of professional football and basketball players were caught up in an investment scam that jilted 58 investors out of $18 million, regulators said yesterday.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority accused Washington-based Success Trade Securities and its 45-year-old founder, Fuad Ahmed, of lying to 58 investors — most of them current and former NFL and NBA players — about how he planned to use their money.

Ahmed sold $18 million in promissory notes to investors without telling them how he was spending it, including a $1,300-a-month lease for his Range Rover and an $82,000 interest-free loan for his brother, according to a complaint.

Finra slapped the securities firm with a temporary cease-and-desist order while it investigates.

Success Trade’s clients were associated with a company called Jade Private Wealth Management, which boasted clients including the New York Giants’ salsa dancing Victor Cruz and San Francisco 49ers tight end Vernon Davis, according to a Yahoo! Sports report.