NFL linebacker turned millionaire Blake Martinez is kicked off the market as his employee is accused of defrauding collectors and he admits: ‘I know what it’s like, trust me’

Blake Martinez, the retired NFL linebacker who made millions selling Pokemon trading cards, is accused of fraud by a major online marketplace.

WhatNot, a platform that allows users to buy and sell collectibles, made no specific allegations against Martinez, 29, but permanently banned him while refunding his customers’ money, according to a statement from the company.

“After a thorough investigation into the operations of Blakesbreaks, we have decided to permanently remove the seller from our platform, including individual employees involved in misconduct,” WhatNot said in a statement, referring to Martinez’s page. , Blakesbreaks.

“We have refunded all buyers affected by the breaches. If you believe you have been affected by an incident on his feeds, please submit the details here, and we will investigate.’

Meanwhile, a Reddit user accused Martinez’s “Blake’s Breaks” of swapping more expensive packs with cheaper ones, which were then passed on to customers. The incident in question involved one of Martinez’s employees, referred to as “Snee” and “PokeSnee”, who appeared to swap one pack for another during a live stream.

Blake Martinez, the retired NFL linebacker who made millions selling Pokemon trading cards, is accused of fraud by a major online marketplace (right)

WhatNot, a platform that allows users to buy and sell collectibles, banned it permanently

“I was skeptical at first, but once you see it, you can’t see it anymore,” one commenter said in response to a Reddit video detailing the allegations. “I was also scammed, won two slabs and each time they never shipped.”

“Blake Martinez should stick to being a publicity-grade football player.”

Another YouTube video also accused Martinez of scamming customers.

Martinez responded in a social media livestream.

“I get the optics…I get what it looks like, trust me,” Martinez said. “I know the type of business I run…I made a lot of money – everybody knows that, in the NFL – I knew going into this was going to have a target on my back.”

He then defended Snee, while saying she would no longer work for him.

“Obviously looking at the Reddit thing, I know Snee had no bad intentions whatsoever. I know what it looks like. I know the whole situation.

“Snee wasn’t going to stream for us from the start because she was going back to college, but from now on she won’t be streaming for us.”

Martinez stressed that he was “proud” to have a “flow of integrity.”

“All I want is for you to feel comfortable in my streams,” he added.

Martinez played with the New York Giants and Las Vegas Raiders after playing in Arizona

Martinez, who worked with the New York Giants and Las Vegas Raiders after playing in Arizona, made headlines by selling a rare Pokémon card last year for $600,000.

CNBC also reported that he made $5 million in seven months selling Pokémon cards, based on the Japanese cartoon phenomenon.

He launched Blake’s Breaks in 2022 — a year after tearing his ACL — and grew his small collecting business into a 15-employee company with warehouses in Miami and Denver.

“I think there’s more to my success than (my name),” Martinez told CNBC Make It. “I was like the quarterback on defense, I was calling plays. When I started this company, I felt like I was leading a team again.