Jackson State LB arrested in COVID-19 scheme
Federal authorities have arrested Jackson State LB Abdul-Malik McClain and are accusing him of defrauding the government of hundreds of thousands of dollars in a COVID-19-related benefits scheme while he was at USC.
A Jackson State football player was arrested by federal authorities Monday and is accused of devising a scheme to fraudulently obtain hundreds of thousands of dollars in COVID-related unemployment benefits, according to a release by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Abdul-Malik McClain, 22, allegedly orchestrated the scheme with other players while he was attending USC in 2020. He pleaded not guilty to 10 counts of mail fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles on Monday. He was released on $20,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in court again Feb. 15.
McClain, a linebacker from Rancho Santa Margarita, California, transferred to Jackson State last December. His name no longer appears on the Tigers' roster on the athletic department's website.
