Shaquille O'Neal Served in FTX Lawsuit After Months of 'Hiding and Driving Away,' Says Plaintiffs
A lawyer in the class-action lawsuit against O'Neal and other celebrities who endorsed FTX tell PEOPLE the NBA personality has been evading servers for three months
Plaintiffs have served Shaquille O'Neal after months of chasing down the former NBA star, the law office representing investors in a class-action lawsuit against the bankrupt FTX cryptocurrency company tell PEOPLE.
Attorney Adam Moskowitz's office tells PEOPLE plaintiffs were able to serve O'Neal, 51, on Sunday afternoon outside his house. In a statement, Moskowitz claims the Inside the NBA host "has been hiding and driving away from our process servers for the past three months," calling O'Neal's alleged actions a "silly sideshow."
"We were mainly just disappointed by Mr. O'Neal's actions, because he has done so many wonderful volunteer efforts, for the police in Florida, as well as here in Miami," Moskowitz told PEOPLE. "It was such a disappointment to waste so much time and resources on this sideshow and hope Mr. O'Neal hires counsel and just follows the law."
Representatives for O'Neal did not respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.
O'Neal and several other celebrities – like including Tom Brady, Gisele Bundchen, Steph Curry, Naomi Osaka, and Larry David – were named as defendants in a class-action suit filed in Florida last November. The lawsuit was filed by investors who say the use of celebrity endorsements duped them into investing in the now-bankrupt FTX crypto exchange.
O'Neal, who has become one of the most prominent commercial spokespersons in the U.S. since retiring from the NBA in 2011, appeared in several commercials and advertisement campaigns for FTX. However, in recent months since the crypto exchange became embroiled in controversy and went bankrupt, O'Neal has tried to distance himself from the company.
"A lot of people think I'm involved, but I was just a paid spokesperson for a commercial," O'Neal told CNBC in December.
Moskowitz's office has called the now-defunct FTX company a "fraud" on social media and, according to CNN, "a massive Ponzi scheme" that used celebrities to recruit investors.
In recent statements and social media posts, the law office has claimed O'Neal had refused to answer the door at his house and that security guards posted outside TNT's studio in Atlanta refused to let them in to serve the basketball hall of famer his legal notice.
RELATED VIDEO: Shaquille O'Neal Has Taught His Kids to Interact With the Police 'With Respect'
Forbes reported last month that Moskowitz's office said it has used four different servicing companies to try and deliver the notice to O'Neal in recent months.
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Related:Tom Brady, Gisele Bündchen Among Celebrities Sued in Lawsuit Against Crypto Company FTX
Federal prosecutors have alleged that FTX used billions of dollars of investors' money for personal use, calling it "one of the biggest financial frauds in American history."
Sam Bankman-Fried, the company's founder, was arrested in December.
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