GRETNA, La. (AP) - Former New Orleans Saints wide receiver Robert Meachem is behind bars after failing to pay nearly $400,000 in child support and alimony.
State District Judge Adrian Adams sent Meachem to jail in Jefferson Parish on Monday for 30 days. Adams said Meachem could be released once he pays his ex-wife, Andrea Rhodes, $100,000. According to court clerk minutes, if that doesn’t happen, he will remain in jail until March 15.
NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune reports (https://bit.ly/2kuTGPb ) Adams also denied Meachem’s motion for a new trial and fined him $500 for failing to bring written testimony from his manager, Tomeka Tovell, about his finances.
Meachem and Rhodes share custody of their two children. The couple separated in May 2014 and was officially divorced in November 2015, according to court records.
As part of the divorce settlement, a court ordered Meachem to pay $20,000 per month in child and spousal support. Attorneys for Rhodes in July and September asked the court to hold Meachem in contempt for failing to make most of the payments.
Rhodes’ attorneys claimed Meachem secretly took $1.8 million from accounts shared with his ex-wife. They also contend he caused more than $5.8 million to disappear from the former couple’s joint investment accounts.
Meachem testified in December that former business associates stole millions from him, forcing him to borrow money from old NFL associates just to get by.
Meachem played for the Saints for six seasons, from 2008-2011 and again from 2013-2014. In 2012, he signed a four-year contract with the San Diego Chargers worth $14 million, but he was let go after a season.
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Information from: The Times-Picayune, https://www.nola.com
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