Owners’ arrests paint dark cloud over NJ’s latest attempt at arena football

<p>The owners of the Jersey Flight arena football team were arrested this week on charges of tax fraud.</p>

News 12 Staff

May 11, 2018, 9:00 PM

Updated 2,440 days ago

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The owners of the Jersey Flight arena football team were arrested this week on charges of tax fraud.
The arrests come just several weeks after the team had their home opener in Trenton. It paints a dark cloud over New Jersey’s latest attempt to have arena football in the state.
Sam Davis and Kyna Felder-Ruiz run Get Organized Tax and Accounting out of Plainfield. They allegedly filed dozens of false tax returns for a five-year period. It cost the government $230,000. Davis is also charged with falsely reporting their gross business income for a span of two years.
But despite this setback, Felder-Ruiz says that it won’t change their status as owners of the flight. The owners say that they have high hopes for the team.
The Jersey Flight is a brand new team in a league that is only two years old. Arena football is known for its unorthodox style of play.
"You'll see guys catch a ball and go over the wall and if you're sitting in that front row, you might have a player end up in your lap,” says one player.
The team is coached by southern New Jersey native Jake Grande, who has coached arena football for nearly 10 years. He says that he believes that the team will work because of the dedication from Davis and Felder-Ruiz.
Players say that they get a sense of that as well. 
"I think everything's gonna be great and we're gonna be here for the long haul,” says player Jordan Page.
Davis says that they've invested a little more than $500,000 into the Flight and anticipates that number to rise. 
Davis and Felder-Ruiz are next due in court Aug. 2. Their attorney did not return calls for comment.