President Donald Trump has pardoned the sports and entertainment executive who spearheaded construction of UBS Arena and helped bring the Islanders back to Long Island.
Oak View Group co-founder Tim Leiweke was indicted in July by Trump’s own Justice Department on one count of conspiracy to restrain trade for allegedly orchestrating the bidding process of an arena in Austin, Texas.
With a jury trial scheduled to begin next year, Trump unexpectedly issued a “full and unconditional pardon” to Leiweke, according to a document posted on the Justice Department’s website and signed Dec. 2. Leiweke had faces up to 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine.
In a statement Wednesday night, Leiweke said: “I do not have the words to adequately convey my profound gratitude to President Trump. This has been a long and difficult journey for my wife, my daughter, and me. The President has given us a new lease on life with which we will be grateful and good stewards.”
Leiweke stepped down from Oak View after his arrest.
“We are happy for Tim that he can now put this matter behind him,” Oak View said in a statement Wednesday. “OVG has remained steadfastly focused on delivering exceptional outcomes for our clients under the leadership of our CEO Chris Granger.”
CNN reported Wednesday that former Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), a close Trump ally, had lobbied the Justice Department to drop the case or grant Leiweke clemency.
Federal prosecutors said Leiweke negotiated a deal with Legends Hospitality, a live events company whose minority owners include the Yankees, to drop a competing bid to develop and operate the 15,000-seat Moody Center at the University of Texas in exchange for lucrative subcontracts.
Leiweke reneged on that deal after Legends dropped its bid, according to the indictment, filed in U.S. District Court in Austin.
Oak View Group, which is part of the UBS’ ownership group, agreed to pay $15 million in penalties in connection with the allegations.
“Timothy Leiweke allegedly led a scheme designed to steer the contract for entertainment services at a public university’s arena to his company,” Christopher Raia, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s New York field office said in July.
Leiweke, the former chief executive of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, which owns the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Toronto Raptors, played a critical role in efforts to build the 17,000-seat UBS Arena and lure the Islanders back to the Island after their abbreviated run at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
After purchasing the Islanders with Scott Malkin and Jon Ledecky from then-owner Charles Wang, Ledecky spent two years on what he described as “a listening tour,” traveling to NHL cities to meet with owners to learn how they did their job.
When the topic turned to getting an arena built on Long Island, Ledecky told Newsday in 2020 that, “Everywhere I went, people said, Tim Leiweke.”
In 2015, after Leiweke formed the Oak View Group with entertainment executive Irving Azoff, the Islanders became their first client.
“This wasn’t a troubled franchise,” Leiweke told Newsday in September of 2020. “This wasn’t a bad market hanging on for dear life … this wasn’t a team trying to battle above its weight to survive. This was the freaking New York Islanders, one of the legacy franchises.”
Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.