Jury selection starts in trial of agent accused of stealing from athletes

GAINESVILLE, Fla - Jury selection started Monday in the trial of a sports agent accused of stealing millions of dollars from college football players he represented. <br> <br> Federal prosecutors accuse William &#34;Tank&#34; Black and associates in his South Carolina-based Professional Management Inc. of defrauding athletes, many of whom now play in the NFL, by diverting their money to their own use. <br> <br> Assistant U.S. Attorney Jerry Sanford estimated the total amount of missing money ranges from $12 million to $14 million. <br> <br> Some of the players who trusted their fortunes with Black were former Florida Gator football stars Ike Hilliard, Fred Taylor and Jacquez Green. <br> <br> Taylor is believed to have lost the most to Black, including a $3 million signing bonus and $380,000 he received from the Jacksonville Jaguars for meeting performance goals. <br> <br> The trial is expected to last four to six weeks. If convicted, Black, 42, faces up to 25 years in federal prison. <br> <br> In January 2000, Black pleaded guilty in Detroit to laundering $1.1 million for a drug ring. He was sentenced to 82 months in prison. Last week, former Black associate Jimmy Roof pleaded guilty to federal conspiracy charges and admitted he conspired to defraud investors. <br> <br> <br>