NFL legend Emmitt Smith is being accused of conning a Native American investor out of $2.5 million as part of an alleged solar project scheme.
The lawsuit, which was filed in Delaware on Monday, alleges that Kituwah LLC, the investment and economic development arm of the Band of Cherokee Indians, loaned the $2.5 million after it was convinced to join the project by Smith, his business partner David Mosley, and their real estate company, 4 13 Solutions Inc., Front Office Sports reported.
The suit against the Hall of Famer and NFL all-time rushing leader is seeking at least $2.5 million, along with interest, costs, expenses, and any additional damages to be determined at trial.
The loan is now more than two years past due, and Kituwah alleges that it has “not recovered a penny.” It also alleges that the money was really used to pay back a company that had previously invested in a venture.
“Kituwah poured substantial time, efforts, and resources in the purported joint venture,” the suit states. “Not only has Kituwah not seen any returns on its investment, Kituwah has been forced to expend additional costs in efforts to reclaim the amounts it is still owed pursuant to its investment, including to investigate what happened to its money.”
The lawsuit also labeled the whole thing a “ploy,” and Kituwah found itself being given a “steady stream of lies” about a deal that first came onto the radar in early 2023.
Kituwah was told it would be a partner in the Project Exodus solar farm that was being planned, and it would eventually receive funding from the U.S. Department of Energy.
The suit claims the loan was made with “false projections and data” and that it had been promised a loan repayment “in a matter of months.” It also expected the solar farm to be up and running by 2024.
Kituwah describes the whole thing “essentially, like a Ponzi scheme” and claims that after it launched its own investigation into what happened with the money, it discovered the money was earmarked to “improperly pay” Wilson Holdings, which had partnered with Smith and the other defendants on other investments.
“Despite being present on multiple calls where Kituwah asked repeated questions about the [loan and joint venture agreement], neither the principals of 4 13 Solutions nor Wilson Holdings disclosed how the loan proceeds … had really been used,” Kituwah wrote in its complaint, per Courthouse News Service. “Their lack of disclosure is telling and only further confirms 4 13 Solutions’ fraudulent intent and the wrongful nature of the payment.”
Smith, 57, has not played in the NFL since 2004, but helped the Cowboys win three Super Bowls in the 1990s.
