After four 1,000-plus yard seasons in his final five years with the Detroit Lions, Johnnie Morton was supposed to become a major offensive addition for the Kansas City Chiefs when they signed him as a free agent back in 2002. Three seasons later, the acquisition never worked out as hoped and Morton was definitely a disappointment. Apparently that trend has continued as Morton has continued his disappointing behavior off the field with recent legal issues that finally earned him punishment announced today.
Morton was charged with lying in front of a grand jury during an IRS investigation and the end result is two years of probation.
From Michael David Smith’s article over at Pro Football Talk:
Accounting Today reports that Morton testified on September 30, 2009 as part of an investigation into a business associate of Morton’s, Neang Chhorvann, who later pleaded guilty to money laundering. Morton claimed under oath that he had no business relationship with Chhorvann and had given Chhorvann a few hundred thousand dollars only as a personal loan.
Morton later admitted that was a lie, and he actually gave Chhorvann more than $2 million as part of an investment scheme. Morton also admitted that he called another potential investor in a scheme Chhorvann was running and tried to convince that investor to put money into a company called Titan Water System. Morton had claimed under oath that he knew nothing about Titan Water System.
Morton had 134 catches for 1,932 yards in three seasons with KC.