Chiefsaholic ran, but he could not hide.
The Chiefs superfan formally known as Xaviar Babudar finally has been indicted by a federal grand jury.
Via David Purdum of ESPN.com, Badubar has been charged with three counts of armed bank robbery, one count of bank theft, 11 counts of money laundering, and four counts of transporting stolen property across state lines. Prosecutors contend that Babudar laundered the proceeds through casinos, and that he used the funds to attend Chiefs home and away games.
(That sounds a little like the plot to Hell or High Water.)
Badubar is accused of stealing more than $800,000.
He skipped bail after winning $100,000 from bets on Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes winning the NFL MVP award and the Chiefs to win the Super Bowl. Babudar allegedly removed his ankle monitor and fled the state.
More than three months later, Badubar was apprehended in California.
“The government’s announcement today of its 19-count indictment provides an unfair and unjust portrayal of Xaviar,” attorney Matthew T. Merryman said in a statement. “The truth is that since 2018 Xaviar Babudar, aka ‘ChiefsAholic’ has entertained, inspired, unified and motivated Kansas Citians, the Chiefs Kingdom and hundreds of millions of football fans around the globe. It’s now the fourth quarter of the most important game of Xaviar’s life, and his legal team believes his innocence will ultimately be proven to the public and we are confident that once all of the facts are known that he will be redeemed in the eyes of his supporters, admirers and the Chiefs Kingdom.”
Badubar is presumed innocent, obviously. But if he truly were innocent, why did he remove his ankle monitor and run away while on bail?
Then again, perhaps saying “give me your money or I’ll shoot” is nothing more than a simple exercise of his First Amendment rights.
