Nile Ranger's lengthy legal history took another negative turn today as the former Newcastle United and Crystal Palace man was sentenced to eight months in prison.
Ranger, who was last with Southend after going AWOL during his spell at Blackpool, was found guilty of committing online banking fraud.
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The 25-year-old appeared in Wood Green Crown Court today, where it was heard that one woman had lost more than £2,000 as part of Ranger's scam.
The court heard how Ranger scammed Diane Bloss out of £2,090 in February 2015 after using her bank details to move the money from one account to another.
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Ranger is a former England U19 international and was tipped for big things when he arrived at Newcastle United's academy in 2008. In 2010, the 25-year-old signed a new five and a half year contract with the Magpies, which would have kept him at St. James' Park until 2016.
Instead, a slew of attitude and legal problems led to Ranger becoming a lower league journeyman after he left Newcastle by mutual consent in 2013.
Loan spell at Barnsley and Sheffield Wednesday were followed by permanent deals with Swindon Town and Blackpool followed, before Ranger finally ended up at Southend United, last Summer.
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The former Newcastle man turned out 25 times for the Shrimpers, scoring eight goals.
His imminent jail sentence is the latest in a long line of clashes with the law, though. In 2013 and 2014 alone, Ranger was charged on suspicion of rape, common assault and twice with criminal damage.
A couple of years earlier, Ranger was charged with being drunk and disorderly in Newcastle town centre and was arrested of suspicion of an assault that left a man unconscious. He was also investigated in 2012 for making homophobic comments on Twitter.
Whether the 25-year-old's time behind bars will veer him back onto the right path once he is released remains to be seen, but if the former England U19 international isn't to change his ways, it will most certainly be a criminal waste of talent.
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(H/T BBC)
Topics: Football
