Commanders owner Dan Snyder 'took out $55MILLION credit line without approval of minority partners'

Commanders owner Dan Snyder is under federal investigation for financial misconduct following a 'secret' $55million loan, according to a new report.

Snyder, who is exploring selling the franchise, reportedly took out the line of credit without the knowledge and approval of his minority partners, Robert Rothman, Dwight Schar and Frederick W. Smith.

And according to ESPN, neither NFL commissioner Roger Goodell or an NFL arbitrator investigated the partners' allegation of financial wrongdoing.

The trio, who owned 40 percent of the franchise, are said to have discovered the loan in the fine print of an April 2020 financial report.

The partners reportedly pressured the league arbitrator to seek proof that the loan was legally obtained, but the NFL 'shut down' arbitration proceedings just four days later.

Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder is reportedly being investigated

Obtaining loans and lines of credit without the approval of Washington's board of directors, of which the minority partners made up half, is a violation of the team's shareholder agreement, according to documents obtained by ESPN.

Eventually, the partner's 'begrudgingly' agreed to mediation - led by Goodell - which resulted in Snyder paying his partners $875 million for their 40 percent stake.

 'This is jail time type of fraud,' an anonymous source told ESPN.

 'The NFL owes them as much of a fair shake as it owes Snyder. And the league had no interest in finding out what happened. They buried it and didn't investigate it and covered it up.'

Documents obtained by ESPN also show that Bank of America officials repeatedly asked team brass for proof that the loan was board approved.

But the team executives 'never turned over a copy of the board approval before the loan closed,' before a team lawyer acknowledged there was no board approval. 

The partners also reportedly found that Snyder was using the team as his 'personal piggy bank,' which included charging the team $4.5million to put its logo on his private jet, they alleged.

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said in a statement, 'The parties had a series of disputes, which were certified to the Commissioner for arbitration as required by league rules. The Commissioner appointed a highly-respected attorney as the arbitrator and none of the parties objected to that appointment.'

Snyder is reportedly holding out for $7billion for the franchise, which he's owned since 1999

The Commanders went 8-8-1 last season as they narrowly missed out on the NFL playoffs

'After several months, the parties were asked if they would be interested in participating in a confidential mediation with the Commissioner, which they agreed to do. The mediation lasted for two days and the parties subsequently reached an agreement whereby the three limited partners sold all of their interests in the team to Mr. Snyder at an agreed-upon price and other terms. 

'Everyone was represented by very sophisticated legal and financial advisors. The agreement included full releases of all claims that were or could have been asserted by any party in the arbitration proceeding.'

A spokesman for the US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia declined comment to ESPN, while the team has reportedly been fully cooperating with the Eastern District of Virginia.

Snyder announced at the end of last year that he is exploring the possibility of selling the embattled team, in the wake of inquiries into sexual harassment, hostile workplace and previous allegations of fraud.

Snyder reportedly values the team at $7billion.