On the third page, the Johnsons essentially signed away Jack's NHL contract, giving the lenders permission to use his paychecks towards paying off the debt if needed. (By this point in time, as the Dispatch reported, Johnson was already having 25 percent of his Blue Jackets paychecks garnished to pay off another loan.) The contract is also listed as collateral, on the fourth page, along with Jack's and his father's Ferraris. On the eighth page, Jack's name is signed with a signature that doesn't appear to match his authenticated autographs. The space for his mother's signature is left blank.

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Per RFF's filing in Johnson's bankruptcy case, Team Johnson made a single payment of $25,000 on the $1,862,500 loan.

The creditors were on all sides merely predatory lenders. Former agent Alan Miller says that when Johnson hired him, he owed CAA and Brisson more than $62,000 that he couldn't pay. According to Miller, he negotiated that amount down to $59,403.19, then cut Johnson a check so he could settle his debt with CAA. That check can be seen as an exhibit in the document below.

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According to a lawsuit Miller filed against Johnson in Oakland (Mich.) District Court in 2010, Johnson agreed to repay the full amount, at seven percent annual interest, within six months. The complaint alleges that Johnson never paid Miller at all.

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Miller filed for a dismissal of his suit on May 24, 2010; he says he and Johnson negotiated a settlement, the terms of which he won't discuss.

According to the person close to Johnson, Jack was oblivious all along to his disappearing money and mortgaged contract. His parents told him all their big purchases were bought with an inheritance from a recently deceased relative, and Johnson, the source says, had no reason to disbelieve them.

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"There were a few people trying to track him down, he would confront his parents, and they would tell him to focus on hockey," the person said. "Typically, they dismissed the people as con artists who were just trying to shake him down. Some of those interactions were happening as long as a year ago. But he had no idea it was a real problem until the spring [of 2014]."

The cover stories started to fall apart when Johnson got engaged to Kelly Quinn, sister of NFL quarterback Brady Quinn. Johnson attempted to move toward being financially independent in anticipation of starting a family, according to our source, but his parents "tried to slow down the engagement, advising Jack not to act so soon."

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The Dispatch reported that Johnson confronted his parents in May of last year. Soon after, he hired his own attorneys and financial advisers, who set into motion the painful and lengthy process of cleaning up the mess of debt he had accrued.

Johnson filed for bankruptcy on Oct. 7, and hasn't spoken to his parents since. He claimed assets totaling less than $50,000, and debts in excess of $10 million. According to our source, just before Johnson filed, his parents attempted to convince him to take one more loan to keep his head above water.

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Photo: AP