Michael William Gouviea of California has admitted to fraud charges for offering a 1951 Mickey Mantle rookie baseball card for sale on eBay. The card drew a winning bid of nearly $7,200, but the winning bidder never got it.

The Mantle “Bowman” rookie card is one of the most expensive cards among traders. It lists at $8,000 in collectors’ guides.

In the original indictment filed by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in November 2004, Gouveia was charged with five counts each of mail fraud and wire fraud in an investigation that was handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Unit.

The plea was entered after Gouveia admitted to defrauding eBay bidders of more than $34,000 between June 2002 and November 2003.

Posted: 09|15|05 at 9:50 am. Filed under: US News.