Latest news with #Leake
Global News
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Global News
Javon Leake hoping to be special teams star that's eluded Elks for years now
There was a time, ages ago, when fans in Commonwealth Stadium rose and roared in unison as Henry (Gizmo) Williams picked his way through a horde of defenders to return another kick for another touchdown. Now there is only the ghost of Gizmo. Since Williams retired in 2000 — having set more than 20 CFL records for punt and kick returns, including 31 return touchdowns — it's been a mostly fruitless search for a long-term returner to give some punch to the Edmonton Elks' return game. In the last 10 years Edmonton has had only one return touchdown — in 2023 by Deontez Alexander, who played only two games for the team. The latest to try is Javon Leake, who last year had the fastest recorded speed by a ball carrier in professional football. He had some success last season, but never reached the end zone. Story continues below advertisement 'I'm back at returner and I've got a point to prove this year,' said Leake, who joined the team last year and can only imagine the feeling of a return touchdown. 'Man, here with coach (Mark) Kilam and knowing the returner who was here, Gizmo, it's going to feel amazing.' 2:19 Edmonton Elks name Mark Kilam as football team's new head coach While it is one of the most exciting plays in football, returning a kick for any substantial gain, let alone a touchdown, takes a co-ordinated and efficient effort by lot more players than just the one with the ball. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'There are a lot of things that have to go right,' said Kilam, a highly respected special teams coach before assuming the head coaching job with the Elks this winter. 'Twelve guys have to do their job.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Twelve guys have to do their job." Story continues below advertisement It starts with the returners first step and becomes successful when everyone involved executes properly. That first step, said Leake, is important in creating misdirection for the kicking team. 'Just selling it, making the defence go one way, just setting up your return, setting up your blocks,' Leake said. 'It's a lot of points that go into it, but the important one is that first step.' Then he counts on his teammates to execute their blocks correctly to create the hole he needs to break through the initial wall of defenders. 'Then me trusting my guys that they're blocking down the field and then just hitting it, the vertical.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Then me trusting my guys that they're blocking down the field and then just hitting it, the vertical." Elks linebacker Josiah Schakel says the blocking team has to know where the returner is headed so they can block the defenders away from the direction of the play. 'You're reading the returner,' he says. 'If he decides to go one way, you're trying to flip your block the other way.' And when everybody does their job, says Leake and Schakel, it can be electrifying for fans and teammates. 'There's nothing better,' said Leake. 'The whole crowd goes crazy; the sideline goes crazy. 'I feel like there's no better play than a missed field goal return, or a regular punt or kick return.' Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I feel like there's no better play than a missed field goal return, or a regular punt or kick return." Story continues below advertisement 'Coach Kilam always talks about the best play in the CFL, the missed field goal return,' added Schakel. 'That's a 10-point swing. That's why the fans get excited. You can watch it, when someone begins to return a field goal, the fans start raising as they realize, 'Hey, this is going for a touchdown.' ' And, he adds, there's personal satisfaction as well. 'Man, when you get a great block and you know you're won that battle, you feel good inside and you're readying to go for the next play.' And when, or if, Leake or a teammate does return a punt, kick or missed field goal for a touchdown, it will be, said Schakel, 'amazing.' 'I feel like the whole team will light up if we start returning kicks. That's just going to change our game. We're a three-phase team so if special teams can contribute to scoring that's going to help the whole team.' No decisions have been made on who will be returning kicks for the Elks, largely because Kilam hasn't had the opportunity to really study the players. Something, he said, is tough to do in practice. 'Returners is a position you really have to get into the game to really get the evaluation,' Kilam said. 'Until that point, we're learning the rules, fielding the football, understanding where to go, but it's definitely a position, when the lights come on you see who's got it and who doesn't.'
Yahoo
07-04-2025
- Yahoo
Zachary woman accused of beating daughter with belt, charged with child cruelty
BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) — A 29-year-old woman from Zachary is facing a felony charge after investigators say she beat her six-year-old daughter with a belt, leaving visible injuries. The East Baton Rouge Parish Sheriff's Office arrested Kyloni Leake on Friday, April 4. She is charged with child cruelty. According to an affidavit, the investigation began on March 27 after the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) reported a possible abuse case involving a first-grade student at an elementary school in Baton Rouge. School staff said the girl was reluctant to participate in gym class, telling them she was hurt. Employees then discovered bruises on the child's right arm, right leg, and face. The girl initially told authorities she had fallen from a scooter, though her older brother reportedly told staff she had gotten into trouble and was not allowed to speak about it. A DCFS worker visited the girl's home on March 25. According to the report, the child again claimed her injuries came from falling outside. The girl was not removed from the home at that time. She was later taken to Our Lady of the Lake Children's Hospital, where doctors diagnosed her with multiple bruises, a contusion on her cheek, and a scar on her upper arm. A physician noted a circular bruise on her right cheek and scattered bruising on both lower legs. Zachary elementary assistant principal charged in child cruelty case During a forensic interview at the Baton Rouge Children's Advocacy Center, the girl said her mother used a belt 'that had circles' to discipline her brothers—and that she received a 'butt whooping' that left marks on her face. When asked how her face was injured, she pointed to it and replied, 'I got a butt whooping.' Detectives later executed a search warrant at Leake's residence and found a black belt with metal circle grommets. Leake identified it as the belt used for discipline. During an interview with sheriff's deputies, Leake admitted to hitting the girl on her legs but denied striking her on the arms or face. She told investigators she disciplined the child after the girl allegedly hit her 3-year-old sibling in the mouth. Leake also told investigators the child fell from her bunk bed and scratched her face days before DCFS was contacted. Following the interview and the forensic disclosures, Leake was arrested and booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison. Police: Man shot, killed in Baton Rouge home Democrats reject Johnson-Luna deal to kill proxy voting Netanyahu meets with Trump at the White House Zachary woman accused of beating daughter with belt, charged with child cruelty Senator says he was joking about using violence against journalists Deputies arrest man accused of firing shots in Livingston Parish Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CBS News
11-03-2025
- CBS News
Former NFL linebacker sentenced to prison after being convicted in $5 million Ponzi scheme
A former NFL linebacker was sentenced on Monday for his part in a Ponzi scheme that saw victims conned out of more than $5 million, according to federal prosecutors. John Robert Lake, 43, of Plano, Texas, but who formerly lived in Marina del Rey, was sentenced to two years and six months in prison for the scheme that involved falsely telling victims that he was involved in lucrative luxury real estate investments, gold mines in Alaska and Ghana and other ventures. He promised them high rates of return if they invested with him, according to a statement from the Office. On top of his sentence, Leake was also ordered to pay $5.3 million in restitution, prosecutors said. He previously pleaded guilty in Sept. 2024 in a Los Angeles federal court to one count of wire fraud and one count of transactional money laundering, according to court records. Prosecutors say that from June 2015 to March 2020, Leake solicited money from his victims by falsely promising them that he was involving in the lucrative business ventures. He also said that he was subletting luxury real estate properties, offering them the opportunity to loan funds for him to invest, to which he said he would exchange for a high rate of return. "In fact, Leake knew these investment opportunities often were fabricated and non-existent and were devised by Leake to defraud victims and trick them into giving him money," the DOJ statement said. "Leake duped his victims by lying that he had invested large amounts of his own money in the purported business ventures he promoted. Leake rarely invested his own money into them." He would provide them with promissory notes "purporting to memorialize his promise to repay" at a fixed interest rate, they said, despite not having "sufficient personal assets and income to repay his victims." Leake once used the victim's money to pay his personal expenses, including credi card bills, rent, car payments and gambling expenses, prosecutors said. They say that this was without the victim's knowledge or consent. Prosecutors say that he received approximately $8,129,450 from six victims, which caused them a total loss of $5,314,059. Leake played college football at Clemson University. He was undrafted in 2004 and signed with the Tennessee Titans shortly after. He never made his way off their practice squad, however. In 2005, he split the season between the Atlanta Falcons and the Green Bay Packers. He re-signed with Atlanta in 2006, the final year of his professional career. He has 12 total tackles in the NFL.
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Yahoo
Former NFL player John Leake sentenced to prison for running Ponzi scheme
Former NFL linebacker John Leake has been sentenced to 30 months in a federal prison and must make restitution of more than $5,300,00 for running a Ponzi scheme. Leake, who played for the Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers from 2005-06, entered a guilty plea in September to to one count of wire fraud and one count of transactional money laundering. On Monday, he was sentenced for having "defrauded victims out of more than $5 million by lying to them that he was involved in lucrative luxury real estate investments, gold mines in Alaska and Ghana, and other ventures, and promising them high rates of return on their investments." Per From June 2015 to March 2020, Leake solicited money from victims by falsely claiming that he was participating in multiple lucrative business ventures, including subletting luxury real estate properties and real estate investing. Leake offered his victims the opportunity to loan him funds for him to invest in these purported ventures in exchange for a high rate of return. He also fraudulently offered to personally guarantee return of the victims' loans and provided them promissory notes purporting to memorialize his promise to repay the victims at a fixed rate of interest. Leake's lies to his victims included his claims that his business ventures were successful, and he had accumulated substantial personal assets and income. In fact, Leake lacked sufficient personal assets and income to repay his victims. Leake played in 25 NFL games with 12 solo tackles and assisting on five others. He played college football at Clemson. This article originally appeared on Touchdown Wire: Former NFL player John Leake sentenced to prison for Ponzi scheme
USA Today
11-03-2025
- USA Today
Former NFL player John Leake sentenced to prison for running Ponzi scheme
Former NFL player John Leake sentenced to prison for running Ponzi scheme Former NFL linebacker John Leake has been sentenced to 30 months in a federal prison and must make restitution of more than $5,300,00 for running a Ponzi scheme. Leake, who played for the Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers from 2005-06, entered a guilty plea in September to to one count of wire fraud and one count of transactional money laundering. On Monday, he was sentenced for having "defrauded victims out of more than $5 million by lying to them that he was involved in lucrative luxury real estate investments, gold mines in Alaska and Ghana, and other ventures, and promising them high rates of return on their investments." Per From June 2015 to March 2020, Leake solicited money from victims by falsely claiming that he was participating in multiple lucrative business ventures, including subletting luxury real estate properties and real estate investing. Leake offered his victims the opportunity to loan him funds for him to invest in these purported ventures in exchange for a high rate of return. He also fraudulently offered to personally guarantee return of the victims' loans and provided them promissory notes purporting to memorialize his promise to repay the victims at a fixed rate of interest. Leake's lies to his victims included his claims that his business ventures were successful, and he had accumulated substantial personal assets and income. In fact, Leake lacked sufficient personal assets and income to repay his victims. Leake played in 25 NFL games with 12 solo tackles and assisting on five others. He played college football at Clemson.
