Indian-origin investment adviser Siddharth Jawahar has been sentenced to 11 years in federal prison in the US for running a multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme that defrauded 64 victims, including Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce.Jawahar, 38, was sentenced on September 15 by US District Judge Zachary M. Bluestone and was ordered to pay $31.35 million in restitution to victims. He had pleaded guilty in January to three counts of wire fraud.Kelce was identified in court as one of the victims of the scheme. Authorities have not disclosed how much the NFL star invested or lost, and there is no allegation of wrongdoing against him in connection with the case.Who is Siddharth Jawahar?Jawahar was the founder of Swiftarc Capital LLC, a Texas-based investment company. According to the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri, he began concentrating client funds in a single investment, Philip Morris Pakistan, in 2015.By the time of the fraud, prosecutors said, 99 per cent of client funds had been consolidated into that investment. When its value declined, Jawahar allegedly concealed the losses and falsely told investors that their investments were generating profits.Between July 2016 and December 2023, Jawahar took in more than $35 million from investors but invested only about $10 million, according to prosecutors.How did the $35 million Ponzi scheme work?Prosecutors said Jawahar falsely represented to investors that their money had been invested in particular companies or investments when the promised investments had not been made.He then used money from new investors to repay earlier investors, a characteristic feature of a Ponzi scheme.The remaining funds were used to support what prosecutors described as an extravagant lifestyle, including private-jet travel, luxury apartments in Austin and New York City, private-club memberships, expensive clothing purchases and high-end restaurant outings.How is Travis Kelce linked to the case?Kelce, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end, was among the 64 victims identified in connection with the scheme. Prosecutors named him during Jawahar’s sentencing hearing, but did not disclose the amount he had invested or lost.A 2021 Forbes report had previously identified Kelce as an investor in a fund established by Jawahar’s company.Kelce has not been accused of any wrongdoing in the case.Jawahar also accused of trying to obstruct investigationThe fraud case included allegations of obstruction after Jawahar was indicted.According to the US Justice Department, he attempted to coach a victim into giving a favourable statement to the FBI, lied about his immigration status and finances, and tried to get his sister to remotely wipe his iPhone to hide evidence.Jawahar, who is originally from India, had been living in the US without legal status since 2005, according to court documents cited by prosecutors.The FBI and Manhattan District Attorney’s Office investigated the case.With the 11-year sentence and $31.35 million restitution order, the case has brought renewed attention to the risks faced by investors when financial advisers misrepresent where client funds are invested and how those investments are performing.