The lawyer of a 68-year-old woman who stole $1.5m in chicken wings during the COVID-19 pandemic has claimed she did so to feed her gambling addiction. Meanwhile, NFL star Chris Jones has claimed he wants to help her.

Earlier this month, Vera Liddell received a prison sentence of nine years after admitting to stealing the wings from a local district. She worked as a cafeteria consultant for an Illinois school district at the time of the offense, which took place between July 2020 and February 2022.

Liddell used her position to make extra orders of wings to sell herself

The chicken wings were meant for underprivileged children. Liddell used her position to make extra orders of wings to sell herself, making $1.5m in total from the sales. Her lawyer, Patrick O’Byrne, says she gambled away the proceeds.

O’Byrne said she feels “incredibly distraught, terrible about what she did,” adding: “She can’t even believe she did it.”

The case has gone viral on X, and Kansas City Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones said he wants to help Liddell. Writing on social media earlier this month, he said “I’ll pay for the wings that she stole to get her free.” O’Byrne has since confirmed he was contacted by someone representing Jones and hopes they can work together to resolve the issue.

They have 30 days from her sentencing on Aug 9 to submit a motion to vacate her plea and request payment of restitution.