Former Hawks Finance VP Indicted in $3.8M Fraud

Lester T. Jones Jr., the former Atlanta Hawks senior vice president of finance, has been indicted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia on a federal wire fraud charge alleging he embezzled about $3.8 million from the franchise. Prosecutors say the scheme ran from at least 2017 through June 2025 and that Jones abused control of the team’s American Express account and expense systems to submit fake reimbursement requests, alter invoices and emails, and charge millions in personal expenses to corporate cards. The indictment cites lavish spending — including trips to the Bahamas, Costa Rica, Hawaii, Las Vegas, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Switzerland and Thailand — a Porsche, Louis Vuitton goods, jewelry, event tickets and an allegedly fabricated $229,968.76 Wynn Las Vegas invoice. An internal Hawks audit helped uncover the scheme; Jones was fired, pleaded not guilty and was released on a $10,000 bond (reports say he surrendered his passport and faces conditions), and a judge has paused speedy-trial deadlines while the case proceeds. Prosecutors are seeking forfeiture of alleged ill-gotten gains, and the matter has prompted scrutiny of the Hawks’ internal controls and broader questions about financial oversight across the NBA.