A Tennessee man bearing the name of the famous ballplayer Babe Ruth has been arrested for allegedly engaging in a scheme that involved exploiting the identities of numerous deceased or retired baseball players to submit fraudulent claims in class action lawsuits. George Herman Ruth, aged 69, is charged with 91 offenses, including mail fraud, aggravated identity theft, fraudulent usage of Social Security numbers, money laundering, and making false statements to his probation officer, in addition to firearms possession following previous felony convictions.

According to the indictment, which spans from January 2023 to July 10, 2025, Ruth orchestrated a sophisticated nationwide plot to file hundreds of fake claim forms with class action administrators across the country. He targeted ongoing class action lawsuits and illicitly utilized the names of many deceased or retired professional baseball players alongside the Social Security numbers of unsuspecting victims. To facilitate this operation, Ruth set up post office boxes throughout the Eastern District of Tennessee and ran a fake business, El Mundo Marketing LLC, to launder the proceeds, with allegations indicating he attempted to acquire more than $550,000 from these activities.

The indictment does not specify the names of the involved players, but some are noted to have played for historic teams like the Philadelphia Athletics, St. Louis Browns, and Kansas City Packers. His fraudulent claims were linked to various lawsuits, which ranged from issues with contact lens pricing to racial discrimination claims against a staffing agency. If found guilty, Ruth could face up to 20 years in prison, with a mandatory minimum of two years, and fines that may reach $250,000.

Babe Ruth, the baseball player, had an illustrious career spanning 22 seasons from 1914 to 1935, primarily with the New York Yankees and he hit 714 home runs during his tenure, a record that held until April 8, 1974, when Henry Aaron surpassed it.