Browns cornerback Joe Haden is among several athletes to buy promissory notes from Success Trade. (Getty)

On the heels of regulators red-flagging a potential $18 million scam last week, multiple federal agencies are probing investments sold to NFL and NBA players, Yahoo! Sports has learned.

According to multiple sources that spoke to Yahoo! Sports on the condition of anonymity, several professional athletes have either been contacted or been urged to contact investigators from the U.S. Department of Justice, the FBI and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Three sources also told Yahoo! Sports that the NFL Players Association has asked a handful of its athletes with investments tied to Jade Management to contact FBI investigators. Jade previously managed finances for dozens of professional athletes, and had investment ties to Success Trade – a firm that came under fire from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) last week. Success Trade was ordered to halt fundraising last week after allegedly selling $18 million in fraudulent and unregistered promissory notes to 58

Getty ImagesFinancial regulators overseen by the U.S. government have ordered an investment firm with prominent NFL and NBA clients to halt fundraising after allegedly selling $18 million in fraudulent and unregistered promissory notes.

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has accused Success Trade Securities and its owner, Fuad Ahmed, of lying about key facts surrounding investments secured by 58 clients. FINRA did not release the names of the athletes ensnared in the scam, however, an 18-month investigation by Yahoo! Sports determined that a large portion of those involved were players represented by Jade Private Wealth Management.

While Jade’s client list has fluctuated, the investment firm boasted more than 70 NFL players at one point, including among others, Cleveland Browns cornerback Joe Haden, New York Giants wideout Victor Cruz, San Francisco 49ers tight end Vernon Davis, as well as former stars such as running back Clinton Portis and defensive end Adewale Ogunleye.

FINRA

Beginning Tuesday, April 2, Yahoo! Sports will debut an original online program, "Dream Chasers," that will share the remarkable stories of six draft prospects pursuing their collective goal of making it to the NFL.

Produced by Yahoo!, the special six-part series followed these elite athletes for 10 weeks as they prepared for the NFL scouting combine in February. Players like Kenny Stills from Oklahoma and Kenjon Barner of Oregon bring viewers into their world by revealing their hopes and fears, triumphs and tragedies, memories from the past and visions of the future.

From Oregon's Dion Jordan overcoming a career-threatening injury and becoming one of the most highly regarded prospects in this year's draft, to Penn State's Matt McGloin beginning his career in State College as a walk-on from Scranton, Pa., "Dream Chasers" gives viewers a unique understanding of what it takes to turn NFL dreams into reality.

Video release schedule:

Dion Jordan, Oregon: Tuesday, April 2
Kenny Stills,

(Getty Images)

One year ago, Everette Scott was under federal indictment for fraud. Months after that indictment, the NFL Players Association certified him to continue his career as an NFL agent. Now he has been convicted and is scheduled for sentencing in September, and the NFLPA is declining to comment on it.

Scott and a co-defendant were convicted early last week of defrauding investors of more than $5 million, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. Scott was found guilty on one count of securities fraud and two counts of wire fraud, after he and his his co-defendant Tryone Gilliam solicited and misappropriated investor funds that Gilliam used to buy luxury cars, jewelry, and other items. Prosecutors also said Scott and Gilliam produced falsified bank records and made false statements to investors in an attempt to conceal the fraud.

Despite the charges against Scott, the NFLPA decided he was fit to remain an agent, re-approving him for business after the lockout and decertification of the

Martin was certified as an NFL agent in 2006 - one year before becoming a BTN game analyst. (Big Ten Network)An NFL agent who has represented at least 12 players – including four former Big Ten players – has been working as a game analyst for the Big Ten Network, Yahoo! Sports has learned.

Chris Martin, who played cornerback for Northwestern University from 1992-95 is now listed as the President of OTG Sports Management, based in Evanston, Ill. Martin was also certified as an agent by the NFL Players Association in 2006 and later hired by the Big Ten Network to serve in an on-air capacity in 2007. In addition to his role as a game analyst, Martin also appears on BTN’s “Football and Beyond” and “Big Ten Football Report.”

The dual positions of agent and BTN analyst has rubbed some agents the wrong way, and led to complaints that Martin is unfairly positioned to sign clients through his TV role. When contacted by Yahoo! Sports, a BTN spokesperson said the network was unaware that Martin was also an agent, and said it would take action to resolve what it viewed as a conflict of interest.

“BTN

Cris Carter spent 12 of his 16 NFL seasons with the Vikings. (US Presswire)Former NFL receiver Cris Carter and a brother are being sued for conversion – the civil equivalent of the criminal charge of theft – by a Florida man who claims he invested $12,500 in a business venture with the pair.

In the lawsuit filed in Broward County court Wednesday, Terrence Williams claims he was approached in June 2011 with an opportunity to invest in a rap song performed and produced by "famous" musicians with whom Carter and his brother George had a connection. Cris Carter allegedly induced Williams to invest in the project by suggesting "millions of dollars" could be made from sales of the song to University of Alabama fans. According to Williams' lawsuit, Carter said he was poised to become the school's wide receivers coach. Williams says Carter told him those sales would occur as a result of the song being played repeatedly at Alabama home games in Bryant-Denney stadium.

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