Arkansas Memorabilia Dealer John Rogers Gets 12 Years for Fake Heisman and Forged-Contract Scheme

Case from 2017–2020 (U.S. Attorney's Office release: March 6, 2017; later developments are from court records and other sources cited below). Published on Scammers.com Oct. 16, 2026; case status is current as of that date.

John Rogers, the owner of two Arkansas businesses, Sports Card Plus and Rogers Photo Archive LLC, pleaded guilty in federal court in Chicago on March 6, 2017, to wire fraud. He admitted a 2009-2014 scheme that used forged contracts and fake sports memorabilia, including a doctored Heisman Trophy, and caused more than $9.5 million in losses to investors, customers and banks [1].

Outcome: On Dec. 20, 2017, U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Durkin sentenced Rogers to 144 months (12 years) in prison and three years of supervised release and ordered $23,552,370 in restitution to 26 victims [3]. Before sentencing, the judge had ordered Rogers taken into custody after evidence that he kept committing fraud after his guilty plea [3]. His 2020 request for compassionate release was denied; the court then put his projected release date at Feb. 2, 2028 [3].

How the scheme worked

According to the plea agreement, as described by prosecutors [1]:

1. Forged deals: Rogers told investors he had contracts to buy sports memorabilia collections and newspaper photo archives that his company would resell at a profit. He showed them contracts he had forged; the deals did not exist.
2. Fake goods: He sold memorabilia he knew was not authentic because he had made or altered it himself.
3. A doctored Heisman: In February 2012 he paired an altered Heisman Trophy with phony certifications to get a $100,000 loan from an investor.
4. Bank loans: He used fraudulent contracts and fake memorabilia to get more than $4 million in loans from several Arkansas banks.
5. Covering tracks: He used fraud proceeds to repay customers who spotted fakes, and handed out fake certificates of authenticity and fake hologram stickers from a major auction house.

The Chicago Sun-Times reported that the fake trophy was presented as Billy Sims' 1978 Heisman, made from an honorary Heisman given to announcer Al Helfer in 1960, and that prosecutors described a "new wave" of fraud after the plea, including a phony Super Bowl I game ball [2].

The person charged

John Rogers, of North Little Rock, Ark. (44 at plea)

• Charged: September 2016, according to the Sun-Times [2].
• Plea (March 6, 2017): guilty to one count of wire fraud [1].
• Custody (Nov. 20, 2017): ordered detained pending sentencing [3].
• Sentence (Dec. 20, 2017): 144 months, three years of supervised release and $23,552,370 in restitution [3]. Judge Durkin called the post-plea conduct "monumentally stupid," the Sun-Times reported [2].
• Compassionate release: denied Aug. 18, 2020 [3].
• Investigation: FBI Chicago [1].

Red flags for collectors and investors

• Certificates of authenticity from the seller rather than an independent authenticator.
• Signs of alteration: new nameplates, mismatched hardware, scratches, or missing screws on trophies and awards.
• "Exclusive" archive or collection deals you can't verify with the supposed seller.
• A dealer who wants memorabilia accepted as loan collateral without independent appraisal.

What to do if you're targeted

1. Get high-value items authenticated by an independent third party, and confirm certificates and holograms directly with the issuing company.
2. Ask for provenance: the ownership history, auction records and photos matching the item.
3. Report suspected memorabilia fraud to the FBI at tips.fbi.gov.

Case status (as of Oct. 16, 2026)

Defendant	Court	Status as of Oct. 16, 2026	Source
John Rogers, North Little Rock, Ark.	N.D. Ill. (Judge Durkin)	Pleaded guilty March 6, 2017, to wire fraud; sentenced Dec. 20, 2017, to 144 months and $23,552,370 restitution; compassionate release denied Aug. 18, 2020	[1], [2], [3]

Sources

1. U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Illinois, "Sports Memorabilia Executive Pleads Guilty to $9.5 Million Fraud Scheme," March 6, 2017. https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndil/pr/sports-memorabilia-executive-pleads-guilty-95-million-fraud-scheme
2. Jon Seidel, "Con man gets 12 years for $23 million sports memorabilia fraud," Chicago Sun-Times, Dec. 20, 2017. https://chicago.suntimes.com/2017/12/20/18340473/con-man-gets-12-years-for-23-million-sports-memorabilia-fraud
3. U.S. District Court, N.D. Ill., United States v. Rogers, No. 16 CR 575, Memorandum Opinion and Order denying compassionate release, Aug. 18, 2020 (via GovInfo). https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-ilnd-1_16-cr-00575/pdf/USCOURTS-ilnd-1_16-cr-00575-2.pdf

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