National Football League

Report: Ex-NFL players face charges

Published May. 1, 2012 1:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

Three former NFL players are facing identity theft and tax fraud charges in Florida, The Miami Herald reported Tuesday.

Former Giants' and Vikings' first-round picks William Joseph, 32, and Michael Bennett, 33, were arrested and questioned Monday by FBI agents in connection with an alleged scheme to steal people's identities and file false tax returns.

Former Patriots draft choice Louis Gachelin, 31, was also detained by federal authorities, along with six others believed to have been involved in the alleged scheme, according to The Herald.

An FBI spokesman declined the paper's request for comment.

Details of the alleged scheme are expected to be revealed later Tuesday after the defendants make their initial court appearances in Miami.

Joseph and Bennett -- both free agents -- played together last season with the Oakland Raiders in 2010. Gachelin, who was drafted by New England out of Syracuse in 2004, was on the Patriots' roster briefly, but never played in an NFL game.