NFL Agent Arrested In Bizarre Murder-For-Hire Plot

The arrest of California State Senator Leland Yee contains details that make it so much more than your typical San Francisco corruption scandal. It features ties to a Triad gangster nicknamed "Shrimp Boy," allegations that Yee plotted to purchase shoulder-fired missiles from an Islamic terrorist group, and somehow involves Freemasonry. It's insane, and that's before we get to an NFL agent accused of taking part in a murder-for-hire scheme.

You can read the affidavit—it's engrossing—or just this helpful chart from the Chronicle breaking down the scandal's key players. Among them is Marlon Sullivan, an NFLPA-certified agent for the Novo Agency, which briefly represented Michael Sam in January (that's Sullivan and Sam in the photo above). He's also the manager of boxer Karim Mayfield, who has a junior welterweight fight on HBO tomorrow night.

Sullivan—try to keep up—is a friend of Brandon Jackson, the son of a political consultant to Yee, and is accused of selling weapons and body armor to an undercover FBI agent, purportedly to raise money for Yee. He is accused of providing the agent with fraudulent credit cards, the keys for which he had purchased with Bitcoins from a supplier in Russia.

On another occasion, according to the affidavit, Sullivan "described their narcotics trafficking including transporting marijuana to the East Coast and Tennessee. Jackson and Sullivan were interested in [the undercover agent] assisting them by providing transportation assistance and suppling them with cocaine and/or other 'hard drugs' to sell on their established routes."

"Sullivan asked if [the undercover agent] would be able to launder proceeds from Sullivan's cocaine deal. [The agent] said that he could. Sullivan stated that he was prepared to do 10 years in prison at any time, that he had a clean criminal record, and that 'ten is the max I'll get.' Sullivan told [the agent] that living a criminal lifestyle was more of a 'power and challenge thing,' that Sullivan didn't have to manufacture fraudulent credit cards, but 'it was fun.'"

The affidavit also describes Sullivan agreeing to carry out a murder-for-hire plot, which he said would be "easy work," and added "I will put eyes on the guy and have my boy knock him down." Sullivan is then accused of surveilling the potential victim at a restaurant to gain a physical description.

Sullivan faces charges of murder for hire, dealing in firearms without a license, and conspiracy to distribute narcotics.

As an agent, Sullivan represents represents 49ers WR Brandon Carswell, Packers FB Ina Liaina, FA WR Cole McKenzie, FA CB Traye Simmons, FA safety Kenronte Walker, FA DT Aaron Tipoti, and draft prospect DB Terrance Mitchell.