Matthew Neet had an idyllic life of Christian ministry and mentorship with a wife and three children before mounting financial pressure pushed him to a life of crime, he told a federal judge.
Under pressure to make up for losses in some poor real estate investments he’d made, Neet carried out a three-year scheme in which prosecutors said he conned investors and fans out of nearly $1 million in bogus investment opportunities and fake tickets for events such as University of Georgia football games.
In his quest to be seen as a successful business owner, he poured his own family’s money into a series of projects, and trying to sustain them over time led to him becoming more desperate, he said in a memo filed in Georgia federal court ahead of his sentencing last week.
“In his own words, he ‘replaced God with money’ and financial success became an idol,” Neet’s attorney said in the memo asking for a sentence of time served. He’s been in custody since October 2024, according to court records.
U.S. District Judge Michael Brown sentenced Neet to four years in federal prison plus three years of supervised release Thursday. Neet must also pay $948,104.91 in restitution to his victims, the judge said.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Neet’s scheme spanned from September 2021 until October 2024, when he was arrested in Louisiana.
During this time, he sold fans fake tickets to UGA sporting events and even a Taylor Swift concert at Caesars Superdome in New Orleans during the “Eras Tour,” prosecutors said.
Prosecutors also said Neet tricked investors into sending money for real estate opportunities in Costa Rica, stealing more than $850,000.
Following the arrest, Neet was transferred to Jones County Jail in November 2024. He also served jail time in Gwinnett before being taken into federal custody in Atlanta in December 2025, according to Neet’s sentencing memo. He pleaded guilty to a wire fraud charge.
An attorney for Neet did not respond to a request for comment Friday.
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