An affidavit filed on Monday in California, alongside the RICO indictment, details the ways in which Eugene “Big U” Henley allegedly misappropriated money from companies, donors, and celebrities.
In the 107-page document reviewed by Complex, FBI Special Agent Andrew Roosa accuses Henley of withdrawing "hundreds of thousands of dollars, purportedly in salary" from his nonprofit organization, Developing Options, which received $550,000 per year from July 2018 to June 2023 through the Gang Reduction Youth Development program.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the L.A. mayor’s office was tasked with overseeing the program, which should have rejected Developing Options. Each contractor is expected to pass a number of requirements, including background checks, training, approval of employees, and more.
“Based on my review of documents in the course of this investigation, Developing Options appears to have failed to comply with some — or potentially all — of those requirements,” Roosa wrote.
Henley is accused of pocketing more than $100,000 in donations to Developing Options. According to the Los Angeles Times, in August 2019, Draymond Green donated $20,000, to the organization with all the money getting sent to Henley's personal account. "On August 20, 2019, Developing Options received a $20,000 donation from a current NBA All-Star (“Donor-1”)," reads the affidavit.
It continues: "HENLEY, however, embezzled the entire $20,000 donation by transferring the funds into his personal checking account the day after Developing Options received the funds from Donor-1."
Per the Times, Shaquille O’Neal sent a $20,000 check in support of the nonprofit and the Crenshaw Rams youth sports team and most of the money wound up in Henley’s account. "On September 21, 2022, Developing Options received a $20,000 check from former NBA MVP (“Donor-5”) intended to support Developing Options and the Crenshaw Rams," reads the affidavit.
A cooperating witness told the FBI in 2022 that athletes and celebrities were expected to pay Henley upon entry to the city, per the affidavit. This witness said they were aware of celebrities who paid Henley for protection when attending events or ran the risk of facing “retaliation from the Big U Enterprise," according to the affidavit.
Aside from allegedly scamming celebrities out of hundreds of dollars, Big U is also accused of killing a young rapper and dumping his body in the Las Vegas desert.