By Enitan Abdultawab
Boxing legend Floyd Mayweather is facing felony charges in Nevada over allegations that he used a bad cheque to purchase a luxury watch worth $200,000.
According to ESPN, the Hall of Famer has been charged with theft and intent to defraud following a complaint linked to the purchase of an Audemars Piguet watch in Las Vegas.
Court documents allege that Mayweather wrote the cheque from a Wells Fargo account on December 31, 2024, despite allegedly knowing the account lacked sufficient funds or credit to cover the payment.
Mayweather was not present at a court hearing on Monday, although his attorney appeared on his behalf as the charges were formally addressed.
The complaint alleges that the former world champion knowingly issued a cheque that could not be honoured, prompting authorities to pursue criminal charges.
Marc Cook, attorney for the watch seller, said his client delayed taking legal action in the hope that Mayweather would eventually settle the outstanding payment.
“The reason for the delay is that my guy trusted Mayweather and was trying to give him every opportunity to make good on that,” Cook said.
“And it got to the point where he wasn’t getting responses and wasn’t getting money for a watch that Mayweather had for well over a year.”
However, Mayweather’s legal team has rejected suggestions that he intended to deceive anyone.
His attorney argued that the matter should be treated as a civil dispute rather than a criminal case, insisting that the boxing icon did not attempt to defraud the seller.
The case is scheduled to return to court on September 17.
Despite the legal challenge, Mayweather remains set to face kickboxing star Mike Zambidis in a full-contact exhibition bout in Athens, Greece, on June 27.
He is also expected to meet longtime rival Manny Pacquiao in a professional rematch later this year.
