Former ‘Black-Ish’ Writer and NFL Player Facing Serious Prison Time For Insider Trading

Damilare Sonoiki, a former writer for the show “Black-ish,” and the Cleveland Browns’ Mychal Kendricks were charged with insider trading, and they now face serious prison time.

Before writing for the hit ABC show, Sonoiki was an investment banker, as well as an analyst for Goldman Sachs, and he gave Kendricks the insider information between 2013 and 2015.

FormerBlack-ish and NFL Player Arrested for Insider Trading

YouTube/Instagram

In return, the pro linebacker — who also played for the Philadelphia Eagles — gave Sonoiki free tickets to Eagles’ games, $10,000 and organized a meet-and-greet with Teyana Taylor.

Kendricks recently issued an apology to his fans and teammates for what he said was a lapse in proper judgement.

“I would like to apologize,” he wrote. “Four years ago, I participated in insider trading, and I deeply regret it. I invested money with a former friend of mine who I thought I could trust, and who I greatly admired. His background as a Harvard graduate and an employee of Goldman Sachs gave me a false sense of confidence.”

“To this point, I had worked my tail off since I was 5 years old to become a football player,” added Kendricks. “I was drawn in by the allure of being more than just a football player. While I didn’t fully understand all of the details of the illegal trades, I knew it was wrong, and I wholeheartedly regret my actions.”

Kendricks also said he plans to pay all of the illegal profits back.

“Although I did not take any of the profits for myself, I am committed to re-paying all of the funds gained illegally and accept the consequences of my actions,” he stated.

According to ESPN, Kendricks and Sonoiki made $1.2 million during their scheme on four major stock investments. The Cleveland Browns have already released Kendricks as well.

Sonoiki has yet to comment, but an inside source said he no longer works for ABC and has already stopped writing for “Black-ish” years ago.

You can read Kendrick’s full statement below.

Still independent.

We hope this story was worth your time. For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed Black-owned and independently run. We didn't get here by waiting on ad budgets that were never built to prioritize us. Our readers did that.

Corporate support for Black media has always been thin. Outlets like ours get roughly 1% of the $170 billion spent on U.S. advertising each year, and that margin is shrinking further as advertisers walk back the DEI-linked commitments they made in 2020. That's the backdrop. It's not why we're asking.

The wider picture isn't any steadier. Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under, it's rarely the ones built to center a Black perspective from the ground up that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Back to top