Serial rapist and ex-Saints player Darren Sharper transferred to federal re-entry program

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - Darren Sharper, who pleaded guilty in 2016 to rape and drug charges in New Orleans, was transferred from federal prison to a re-entry program on Tuesday.

Sharper, a former Saints player, was transferred on May 27, 2026, from federal prison to community confinement, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

The former NFL star was sentenced to 18 years in prison after he pleaded guilty or no contest to drug and rape charges.

Sharper’s criminal case stretched across several states. He pleaded guilty or no contest in courts in Louisiana, California, Nevada and Arizona to charges tied to allegations that he drugged and raped or attempted to rape multiple women. The allegations surfaced after his 2014 arrest in Los Angeles, where investigators said he drugged and sexually assaulted women he met at nightclubs.

Sharper played 14 seasons in the NFL, including with the Saints’ Super Bowl XLIV championship team after the 2009 season. He later worked as a television analyst before the allegations became public.

Brandon Licciardi, a former St. Bernard Parish sheriff’s deputy who was arrested in the case, was sentenced in 2016 to 17 years in prison. Prosecutors said Licciardi and Erik Nunez were charged with Sharper in a conspiracy to drug and rape women.

Licciardi admitted to helping Sharper drug women and admitted to raping a woman Sharper had drugged. He was released from federal prison supervision in April 2026, according to the Bureau of Prisons information.

Nunez also served prison time in connection with the case and completed his sentence in July 2023.

Sharper has a projected release date of Dec. 27, 2028.

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