WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. House Oversight Committee sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission saying it found evidence the NFL's Washington Commanders engaged in unlawful financial conduct.
The committee says the team withheld ticket revenue from visiting teams and refundable ticket deposits from season-ticket holders.
In the letter, which was obtained by the Associated Press, the committee said up to $5 million was retained by the team in 2016 from 2,000 season-ticket holders and they also concealed from the league sharable revenue.
During their testimony before Congress, a former employee said two separate financial books were kept by the team, with the league receiving one with underreported ticket revenue and the other containing everything, the AP reported.
According to the news outlet, the former employee added that owner Dan Snyder knew what was being shared with the league's office and what the actual data was, too.
The committee said emails, documents, and statements made by former employees indicate team executives and Snyder engaged in "a troubling, long-running, and potentially unlawful pattern of financial conduct."
The committee is sharing documents with the FTC while requesting the commission take any action necessary to make sure the money is returned to its rightful owners.
