CLEVELAND (AP) -- Former Cleveland Browns wide receiver Reggie Rucker was sentenced Wednesday to 21 months in prison for stealing from two charities, a crime his attorney blamed on a gambling addiction caused by football-related brain injuries.
Rucker, 68, pleaded guilty in February to wire fraud and false statement charges after an FBI investigation found that he had stolen more than $100,000 from the two groups, with much of the money withdrawn from ATMs at casinos in Cleveland, Las Vegas and elsewhere. Rucker withdrew hundreds of thousands of dollars from bank accounts he oversaw, authorities said.