KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Event planners have issued a letter of apology to former Kansas City Chiefs player Joe Perez to settle a lawsuit after he was left to take the heat for a botched New Year’s Eve fundraiser.

The Kansas City Star reports that Perez’s name was used to market the Hangar 9 New Year’s Eve party in 2014 to benefit the city’s Airline History Museum. But he wasn’t involved in setting up for the event or problems that included inadequate food and drink.

Michelle Sedighi and Sundee Pickering said in a notarized statement that media inquiries were directed to Perez because they “wished to remain anonymous.” They owned a now defunct event-planning company called KC Connections.

Perez received no money. He says his goal was to “bring the truth to light.”