Petters Ponzi Party

Postcard From Ponzi Island (Final Version)

2011-04-24T07:40:00.000-07:00

Way back in 2009, Teri Buhl at Dealbreaker.com wrote:

Tom Petters was arrested for money laundering by the FBI last October and the SEC said there were $3.5 billion in losses for fund of hedge funds in his Ponzi scheme. For now, court proceedings in the Petters criminal case have been sealed - leaving the victims and the public with few answers about who else conspired in this maze of financial crime and abuse of investor confidence. One such person is a reformed convict turned multimillionaire Frank Vennes....

First, incomplete version in this post.

Frank Vennes Card

2011-04-23T20:08:00.000-07:00

More Bachmann Trading cards HERE.

Here's a good summary of Bachmann's connection to convicted felon Frank Vennes Jr. by Karl Bremer:

In 2008, it was revealed that Bachmann had received tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from Frank Vennes Jr. and his family. Vennes is a convicted money-launderer/cocaine runner/gun runner for whom Bachmann had requested a presidential pardon in 2007.

When Vennes became implicated—but never charged—in the Tom Petters multibillion-dollar Ponzi scheme in 2008, it didn’t take long for Bachmann to abandon her principled “innocent until proven guilty” stance. She quickly rescinded her pardon request for her close personal friend, and then tried to further save face by giving away a portion of the money she had taken from Vennes and family—although it was only $9,200 of the $27,400 she had hauled in from the Vennes family from 2005-2008.

Bachmann first tried to give the money to Minnesota Teen Challenge, a favorite evangelical charity of Bachmann’s that once had very close ties to Vennes. He is a former board member of the organization. However, Minnesota Teen Challenge allegedly lost $5.7 million in investments in Petters companies that were made through one of Vennes’ companies.

Rich Scherber, executive director of Minnesota Teen Challenge, said his organization sent Bachmann’s $9,200 check back without even cashing it.

“We didn’t want to be involved if it was dirty money,” Scherber said at the time.

Bachmann eventually found a willing taker for her tainted Vennes money when she donated it to R3, a collaborative of Christian recovery groups that happens to include Minnesota Teen Challenge.

Greg Bell Sentenced to 72 Months With Credit for 14 Months

2010-09-30T17:46:00.000-07:00

Robert White Sentenced Today

2010-09-15T11:32:00.000-07:00

Bob White testified and pleaded and got five years. (click on sketches to make them bigger):

Sketch from the Sentencing of Larry Reynolds

2010-09-14T20:36:00.000-07:00

Reynolds received 130 months for his role in the Petters Ponzi scheme. He looked much older.

Sketches From the Sentencing of Michael Catain

2010-09-13T14:24:00.000-07:00

Judge Kyle gave Michael Catain 90 months today. This is a page from my journal (click on the page to make it bigger):

Sketch of Deanna Coleman at Sentencing

2010-09-09T17:28:00.001-07:00

KSTP:

The woman who blew the whistle on Tom Petters' $3.7 billion Ponzi scheme has been sentenced to one year in prison.

Deanna Coleman, 44, was emotional as she addressed a St. Paul courtroom Thursday. She apologized to investors and her family. Coleman said "I spent the last couple of years trying to mend what I did."

Click on sketch to make it bigger:

Petters Trial Trading Cards - Batch # 4

2010-02-05T12:27:00.001-08:00

Petters Trial Trading Cards - Batch # 3

2010-02-05T12:25:00.000-08:00

Petters Trial Trading Cards - Batch # 2

2010-02-05T12:23:00.000-08:00

Petters Trial Trading Cards - Batch # 1

2010-02-05T12:17:00.001-08:00

Petters Trial Sketches

2009-10-30T16:46:00.000-07:00

Sketches from the trial at the Petters Info blog.

Ponzi Island

2009-07-13T18:38:00.000-07:00

Tom Petters and Bernie Madoff, both former denizens of Ponzi Island, now guests at the Graybar Hotel... will there be others?

Dealbreaker.com speculates:

Tom Petters was arrested for money laundering by the FBI last October and the SEC said there were $3.5 billion in losses for fund of hedge funds in his Ponzi scheme. For now, court proceedings in the Petters criminal case have been sealed - leaving the victims and the public with few answers about who else conspired in this maze of financial crime and abuse of investor confidence. One such person is a reformed convict turned multimillionaire Frank Vennes....

Stay tuned...

Quick Sketch of Tom Petters 6/16/09

2009-06-18T22:49:00.000-07:00

Pirates of Lake Minnetonka Map

2009-04-18T07:54:00.000-07:00

The lake and smaller maps with details.

Click on map to make it bigger:

Pirates of Lake Minnetonka

2009-03-24T23:22:00.000-07:00

ARRRrrrrrrhhhhh!!!!

Bentley'd Out of Shape

2009-02-12T13:41:00.000-08:00

City Pages:

This wasn't Catain's first run-in with police. Neighbors call him a community bully who often yelled and threatened nearby residents. He has filed at least two lawsuits as a result of conflicts; one against neighbor John McMasters is still active. Neighbors say police have been called to the residence more than a dozen times.

"This is a neighborhood dispute on steroids," said McMasters's attorney Ed Cohen. "While building his home here, he decided he was king of the neighborhood, so he started bossing people around, screaming and yelling and calling the police." Catain sued McMasters for causing irreparable distress to his wife, which McMasters denies occurred.

According to the 2006 police report from the incident, Catain was angered after his wife said McMasters was threatening her. When police arrived, Catain was screaming, "You wanna come after my wife? I'll fucking kill you." Later on, he told police he knew state Attorney General Mike Hatch and had contributed enough to his campaign that he deserved a favor. He wanted a restraining order against McMasters and hoped to get him kicked out of Shorewood.

Other neighbors have equally disturbing horror stories about the Catains but wanted to stay anonymous to protect their families and avoid potential lawsuits.

KSTP:

As court marshals arrested Catain, he gave his wife his rosary, kissed her, hugged her and told her to be strong. Both Catain and his wife were visibly shaken.

Catain pleaded guilty to cooperating in an alleged $3 billion Ponzi scheme with Petters.

(Click on the pictures to make larger)

"I'm Ready for My Close-Up Mr. DeMille"

2009-02-09T19:14:00.000-08:00

Strib:

....agents with the FBI, IRS criminal investigative division and U.S. Postal Inspection Service seized scores of documents, computers and records from Vennes' home -- including checkbooks from one of the charities he had sponsored.

From a basement vault, agents took boxes and buckets of silver and gold coins, trays of jewelry, five stacks of $100 bills, boxes of gem stones, silver plates and Rolex watches. Agents also seized diamond rings and numerous paintings, including dozens with religious themes, such as the raising of Lazarus from the dead.

Click on picture to make it bigger:

Starting Over?

2009-02-04T21:34:00.000-08:00

KSTP:

PETTERS: "you know, they're not going to give either one of us a deal."

WHITE: "I’m scared as could be, Tom."

WHITE: "It’s hard to just take off with a boat…you got to do some preparations and it costs...it's not like driving to the cabin."

Both men then talked about how their families would handle a life on the run.

Petters said his girlfriend, Tracy, and mother of their two children, told him "as long as we have our kids, we can do anything. We can start over and do anything."

(click on picture to to make make it bigger)

You Can't Take it With You?

2009-01-25T15:59:00.000-08:00

Strib:

"... After making an inventory of the household goods in Catain's Lake Minnetonka home, an investigator returned to find that several fixtures -- "including expensive chandeliers" -- had been removed. "

Thrown From the Wolves?

2009-01-25T15:50:00.000-08:00

Strib:

"... the government's key witness and informant, former Petters executive Deanna Coleman, tried to keep her $800 courtside season tickets to the Minnesota Timberwolves... "

Tom Petters Has No Friends?

2009-01-25T09:33:00.000-08:00

... on Facebook: