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Former Viking Voigt charged in alleged Ponzi scheme

Former Minnesota Vikings tight-end Stu Voigt was one of two people indicted Wednesday on federal fraud charges stemming from an alleged Ponzi scheme.

Voigt, 66, of Apple Valley, and Jeffery A. Gardner, 61, of Hopkins, are charged with mail fraud, bank fraud and making false statements in loan applications, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney's Office Wednesday. Additionally, Voigt is charged with making false statements to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

The indictment alleges the two men raised funds from private investors through Gardner's company, Hennessey Financial, ostensibly for commercial real estate ventures with promised returns of 10 percent to 20 percent annually.