New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees says he was cheated out of millions by a jeweler who sold him more than $15 million worth of jewelry over the years.
The accusation is the subject of a lawsuit Brees filed against Vahid Moradi, who runs who runs the CJ Charles jewelry shop in San Diego, TMZ reports. Brees claims he’s been buying jewelry from Moradi since the start of his career, which began with the San Diego Chargers. He said he learned after having his collection appraised recently that its real worth is roughly $9 million less than the $15 million he was led to believe. That collection reportedly includes watches, earrings and rings.
The lawsuit charges that Moradi knowingly lied to Brees when he insisted the jewelry was an investment that would appreciate in value over time. Brees says the biggest deceit Moradi perpetrated on him came in 2015 when he purchased a 4.09 carat blue diamond ring for $8.1 million. It was appraised for just $3.75 million.
However, Moradi’s attorney, Eric George, argues that Brees turned to bullying his client when he decided that the jewelry did not go up in value as he expected.
“Mr. Brees’s behavior and his belief that he was wronged because the jewelry did not appreciate in value as quickly as he hoped both demonstrate a lack of integrity and contradict basic principles of both economics and the law,” George said. “He should restrict his game-playing to the football field, and refrain from bullying honest, hard-working businessmen like my client.”
Brees is seeking $9 million in damages, according to the suit.