A former NFL agent from Marietta has admitted to bribing three University of North Carolina football players with thousands of dollars in improper benefits to entice them into signing contracts, according to The Associated Press.
Terry Watson, 43, entered the guilty plea Monday, putting to rest his 3½-year-old felony charges. He received 30 months of probation and a $5,000 fine. A judge issued a suspended jail sentence of six to eight months.
Watson pleaded guilty to the 13 counts of athlete-agent inducement for providing roughly $24,000 in cash and travel accommodations to eventual NFL players Robert Quinn, Marvin Austin and Greg Little in 2010.
In the past, the agent represented Danny Ware — the former UGA running back arrested in Athens-Clarke County on a DUI charge last year months after his 3-year-old son was killed by a car while riding his bicycle outside his mother's Texas home. Ware played six seasons in the NFL.
Watson was one of five people charged in the bribery case, which centers around a violation of the state’s sports agent law.
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The law prohibits illegally luring collegiate athletes into contracts by providing them money, gifts or other items of value. It has been enacted in at least 40 states along with the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands, but varies from state to state.
When search warrants in the case were unsealed a couple of years ago, the AP reported that in 2010 Watson had sent $2,000 cash to Marvin Austin, who was dismissed from the team that year for receiving improper benefits. They also said Watson had contact with players before registering with the state, a violation of the state's sports law.
Watson's charges came after investigation by North Carolina's Secretary of State's office and after the NCAA had opened an investigation into the school's football program. That case ultimately spawned the university's ongoing multi-year academic scandal, which has UNC currently facing five top-level NCAA charges that include lack of institutional control.
Russell Babb, Watson's attorney, told the court that Watson was no longer working as a sports agent since first facing charges in fall 2013 and had lost his license with the NFL Players Association. Instead, he said, Watson was working in chemical sales and waiting tables as a second job while going through a divorce.
Georgia business records show that the Marietta-based Watson Sports Agency dissolved at the end of 2015, a decade after forming.
“Terry fully understood what his options were and just wanted some closure today,” Babb told The Associated Press after the hearing. “He was adamant that he was tired of this hanging over his head. He's moving forward in a positive direction. Even though his marriage is falling apart, he's working hard and has the love of his kids.”
Watson’s plea came together a few hours after his friend agreed to testify against him as part of a deferred-prosecution deal.
Patrick Mitchell Jones, 43, was charged in 2013 with athlete-agent inducement for providing $725 to former Tar Heels football player Robert Quinn. According to an indictment, he provided the money through Quinn’s former girlfriend to entice Quinn to sign with Watson.
Jones’ deal required him acknowledge his involvement and “testify truthfully” against Watson, according to a court document.
Jones has worked as a real estate agent in Cartersville. His deal also requires him to stay out of legal trouble, perform 48 hours of community service and not discuss the case with other defendants.
According to information in a 2013 search warrant, Jones told an investigator in June 2012 he was Watson’s longtime friend and said he sent packages containing cash to student-athletes at Watson's request.
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