The N.C. Secretary of State’s Office has issued a search warrant the financial records of sports agent Gary Wichard.
The warrant was issued by special agent Sam Cabrera to search Bank of America for bank statements and alleges that Wichard paid for former UNC defensive lineman Marvin Austin to fly round trip to California, where the two met in person for the first time at the Pro Active Sports training facility in July.
This would be a violation of a N.C. state law that prohibits agents from “furnishing items of value to a student-athlete before the student-athlete enters into the agency contract.”
The affidavit states that the flight was originally paid for by Austin’s high school assistant coach, Todd Amis, but that Amis was reimbursed by Wichard’s Pro Tect Management (PTM). The document states that Amis provided a canceled check from Pro Tect Management for $1,000.
According to the search warrant, PTM also paid travel agency Altour International for an alteration to Austin’s itinerary and that the documents related to which were provided to the N.C. Secretary of State’s Office by Altour.
Wichard is also alleged to have initiated contact with a student-athlete without being registered as an athlete agent under the state’s Uniform Athlete Agents Act.
Austin was dismissed from the UNC football team on Oct. 11 for violating NCAA improper benefits rules.
