Oklahoma sports agent gets prison for misusing charity funds

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - An Oklahoma sports marketing agent has been sentenced to prison and ordered to pay nearly $698,000 in restitution for misusing charity funds.

Bill Horn, 59, was sentenced to 15 months behind bars Thursday after pleading guilty to two felony tax charges in September, The Oklahoman reported. He admitted to lying on annual foundation forms sent to the IRS.

Horn is scheduled to begin his sentence in February.

Horn founded a charity in 2006 for his client, Tommie Harris, a former defensive tackle at the University of Oklahoma who also played for the Chicago Bears.

Prosecutors alleged Horn helped The Tommie Harris Foundation raise more than $1.8 million over six years, but used the charity's money and credit cards for personal purposes.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles W. Brown said the funds were used for entertainment, dining, a vacation home in California, travel and lease payments on a Mercedes. He said an investigation determined that only about $200,000 were used for legitimate organizations.

Horn's restitution is to be paid to the Boys & Girls Clubs of America, because the foundation he created no longer exists. Harris shuttered the charity after his wife died in 2012.

Horn apologized at the sentencing and said he made a grave mistake.

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Information from: The Oklahoman, http://www.newsok.com