James Whitner The Whitaker Group Statement

In November 2023, James Whitner—founder of The Whitaker Group—was named in a court document detailing a multimillion-dollar international money laundering scheme. Today, The Whitaker Group reveals it has been cleared of all charges following a federal investigation.

The original report, filed Nov. 17 through Dena J. King in the Western District of North Carolina, alleges that Whitner became involved with Chinese nationals in a “trade-related money laundering operation” centered on Whitner’s connection to an unnamed Oregon sneaker company believed to be NIKE, Inc.

At the time of the lawsuit, Whitner was not charged, but was required to forfeit the unreported $1,199,530 USD that he knew he had seized from Freeman’s New Jersey residence. The Whitaker Group officially forfeited the money because it chose not to file a claim for the money seized by prosecutors. The final deadline to claim the money was September 13, 2024.

Official Statement from The Whitaker Group

“Following a thorough investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of North Carolina (USAO) into James Whitner and The Whitaker Group, the Office declined to prosecute based on, among other things, the sufficiency of admissible evidence to support prosecution. This outcome reaffirms our position on the integrity of our business, the transparency of our operations, and the regulatory compliance of all of our tools, platforms, and processes that allow us to effectively serve both our communities and consumers.

Throughout this investigation, your trust in our mission and support of our team, our work, and our stories has been invaluable, THANK YOU! We are grateful for the extraordinary support of our vendor partners as we worked to bring this investigation to a close.

As we move forward and look to the future, we are excited to continue building a legacy of excellence, telling the stories and building experiences that shape community and culture. We look forward to continuing this journey together and seeing all of you in our spaces along the way.”

Despite the initial allegations, the Whitaker Group and NIKE, Inc. have continued to collaborate on creative projects. Currently, it is in the midst of a six-shoe capsule called “While You Were Sleeping.” At the time of this article, three of the six shoes have already released. The newest, the Air Jordan 4, will be re-released on September 26th at select Jordan Retail Partners.