Tim Durham getting taken down by FBI?

[IUkid]

Anyone catch Fox News? Sounds like Durham is getting in some trouble with the Feds, but I missed the details. Anyone know?

For those who do not know, this is the guy with the Veyron, and about 75 other cars..

[jbssfelix]

Yeah, FBI won't disclose details on the raid, but Indystar says the FBI also raided Fair Financial Services in Akron, OH at the same time.

Wonder what's goin on...

[IUkid]

Part is inflating stock prices for National Lampoons, that is about as much as I am aware of.

[Indy CTS-V]

FBI raids businesses of prominent Indy exec

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - The FBI raided the offices of Obsidian Enterprises of Indiana and Fair Financial Services around two o'clock Tuesday afternoon. The companies are located inside the Chase Tower building in downtown Indianapolis.
24-Hour News 8 went inside the Chase Tower to one of the offices in question and witnessed dozens of boxes filled with paperwork and an FBI agent standing guard.
Obsidian Enterprises of Indiana is headquartered in Indianapolis while Fair Financial Services is based out of Akron, Ohio. Tim Durham, the chairman and CEO of Obsidian, owns or controls at least 15 businesses around the country. The Indianapolis Business Journal reports that Durham owns Fair Financial as well.
Obsidian's Web site says it invests in small and mid cap companies in basic industries like manufacturing and transportation. Fair Financial’s Web site says it helps business owners find the money they need to succeed.
24-Hour News 8 tried calling both businesses and the line went straight to voicemail.
There appeared to be no employees inside the offices Tuesday. The warrants are sealed, so the FBI won’t say exactly what they’re looking for or when the investigation into the companies began.
Tim Durham is a native Hoosier, born and raised in Seymour, Indiana. He received his undergraduate degree from Indiana University and owns a home in Fortville.

24-Hour News 8 interviewed Durham a few years ago.
At one point, Durham said, "At the end of the day, when I breathe my last breath, I'd like to be worth more than anyone else in the world.”

He added, "(Business) is like the ultimate Monopoly game, you always just want to win the game."
The FBI said if you have conducted business with either company, please call 1-800-CALL-FBI.
They said if people associated with those companies have concerns about their money, then it is in they’re best interests to call.

[4G64T]

Double post for the lose.

Getting to drive his Carerra GT FTW!

[Indy CTS-V]

Saturday, October 24, 2009

Tim Durham's House Of Cards



Many Indianapolis observers have wondered just how entrepreneur Timothy Durham has been able to acquire so much wealth and lead the life of a Hollywood celebrity. People sometimes compare his business empire to the house of cards former Conseco CEO Steve Hilbert built that eventually came crashing down. The IBJ's Greg Andrews takes a probing look at Durham's business empire and, not surprisingly, it raises troubling questions for investors that suggests it's built on a house of cards.

Most people have probably never heard of Fair Finance Co. It's a Ohio consumer finance company Durham bought seven years ago that pays interest to investors of about 9%. Andrew's research has discovered that Durham has been operating the company like a personal bank, loaning himself and his business partners $168 million, or 70% of the company's assets. The interest rates offered by the company easily outpace the low rates offered by commercial banks. The securities issued by Fair, however, carry no government guarantees. The size of the company's so-called investment certificates has grown to $197 million according to Andrews, five times the amount the company had when Durham acquired the company along with Jim Cochran.

Andrews spoke to a securities expert who read the circulars that accompany the issuance of the companies' investment certificates and he couldn't believe they had not captured the attention of Ohio securities regulators. “I am incredulous that Ohio continues to register these securities,” said James Klimek, a former chief counsel to Indiana’s securities commissioner. The lack of audited financial statements, confusing financial information and troubling insider loans were red flags raised by Klimek.

Durham would not agree to an interview with Andrews, citing past negative reporting on his business activities by the IBJ. An Ohio securities official told Andrews the fact that the securities were registered in that state didn't mean the state had passed on their merits. A state law, however, allows Ohio officials to insist on repayment of insider loans within 6 months, but it hadn't enforced that requirement with Fair. The company has loaned $44 million to DC Investments, which is owned by Durham and Cochran, and it loaned another $29 million to Durham's Indianapolis-based Obsidian Enterprise, Inc. and related entities. One of the founding members of Obsidian is Brian Williams, an upstart seeking the Democratic nomination for mayor of Indianapolis in 2011.

Andrews discusses Durham's 30,000 square foot 8-bedroom home on Geist and the lavish parties he is known to throw there. Politicians of all stripes have used Durham for political fundraising. He gave about $150,000 to Marion Co. Prosecutor Carl Brizzi's last re-election campaign. Brizzi reportedly lived in Durham's home for a period recently when he was going through his divorce. "My decorator can do a lot with an unlimited budget,” Durham said during a CNBC show profiling his home and his success.

According to Andrews' story, investors have started losing faith in Durham. The stock value of Obsidian dropped from $12 to $1.85 while it was still a publicly-traded company. In litigation with some of Obsidian's investors, Durham has been accused of shift[ing] assets, acquir[ing] and dispos[ing] of assets, and hid[ing] assets." "All the shifts, acquisitions and concealing have been done to Durham’s financial benefit and the detriment of the plaintiffs,” a lawsuit reads. Durham eventually entered into a settlement agreement with the investors according to Andrews. He outlines a number of other lawsuits Durham has been entangled in.

Andrews sees a very risky and uncertain financial future for Fair, noting recent losses and the staggering amount of debt it carries. The company's net worth is only $5.5 million presently. The insider loans Durham made to himself will come due soon. Whether those loans are repaid will say a lot about the company's and Durham's futures.


Source Link: http://advanceindiana.blogspot.com/2...-of-cards.html

************************************************** ***

And there ya have it? Dunno....certainly makes one think doesnt it.





Nothing for nothing...but just another person many lined up to suck the nutz of and acting like he was the best of the best. If dude was doing what they incinuate he was doing he should have been a little more low key? JMO

I really cant make any judgements as I have never met him...just heard stories. Most of them were either general "nutswinger" stories or bad press made by him for acting a bit arrogant at many times in public at clubs.

[flamer]

Just proves, the USA does not want you to be wealthy. How many poor people do shady shit and get away with it, but when you're high end, high profile and doing shady shit, they're shutting your ass down!!

[Gretski]

You can be rich, you just have to do it legally.

[cop car]

sounds like a thief to me.

id love to buy a company, loan myself millions of dollars and then just call it even and fold the company i borrowed money from.

[looda]

I went to school with one of his sons and always had a hunch about their whole family. But I am one of those tin foil hat wearing paranoid people. One of my friends who worked downtown and also went to school told me about this. So, who wants to pool some money and get any number of super nice cars on the cheap?

[Performance Driven]

If you search the web, you will find that this is not the first time he has made the news for problems with his companies. There have been other lawsuits from share holders and varioius issues. But this is not to say he is guilty or not. I do not believe I know enought to say anything other than what is printed in the news. I have heard some rumors over the last several years through other contacts I have in the business world, but you never know what to really believe.

From my experiences in major corporations there are always two ways that these things come about. 1) They are guilty of what they are accused. 2) Someone see's him as a rich target and is trying to get rich by targeting someone else with money. There is usually a company with political ties that will profit from these activites when this happens. I always wonder who stands to gain from this?

I have seen court cases stalled for years in the courts because of one companies political ties while other cases are moved ahead at light speed for the same reasons.

So I try to not judge without knowing the facts.

[flamer]

It's so typical in my mind. From everything I've read, there are issues with him taking investment money and putting it into other companies. Well, I hate to say it, but what I meant by my prior comment, is that this happens all the time!! I haven't known a company owner that didn't buy themself shit with company money. They are out there, spending company money to buy "company cars" and the like. It was just on a smaller scale. I don't know the guy at all. Never met him, but I'll tell ya, I'd love to live the way he does. I am just throwing out a different kind of curve ball. I read an article last night talking about him taking security investments money and spending it on other companies.... here's the issue, his companies are buyout companies, that's what he does. So to invest in his company means you're investing in other companies that he decides to buy. No issue. Supposedly his securities are coming due the end of this year, to the tune of 200 million. The company is only worth 5.5 million. Ok.... so THAT company can't pay back the money, but who says the pool of other companies can't pay back? I just don't understand the whole deal really. Oh well, it's like any other form of getting rich. The richer you get, the bigger the target on your back gets. Look at all the folks that win the lottery. They end up with FAR more realatives than they ever knew they had!!

[Performance Driven]

Major corporations are really good at giving executives perks and putting it in different budgets. They loan executive money that is regularly not paid back , just forgiven loans written off by the company.

I have seen companies using different ways to pay for executives country club memberships. There was one country club that had a LLC owned by the country club called something like "International Society for Quality in America". I cannot remember exactly what it was called, but something like that. The company I worked for at the time was paying $8x,xxx a year to this Society for the CEO. Come to find out it was for his country club dues, but charged off on the company as Professional Membership dues. Professional Membership dues were supposed to be dues of associations like American Society for Quality, ASE, and other true professional associations employee's were a part of for the betterment of the company. Some research turned up that of the $1.2M in professional dues the company paid per year, almost $1M was for one person in the company.

These loans and other perks really are on of the reforms that needs to take place in the US. They are not allowed in many other countries. And in many other countries executives pays are not close to what they are in the US. I am all for Executive earning what they are worth, but is any Executive worth more than all the hourly employee's combined?

I have been at the Directors level in major corporations, but one reason I left the corporate world was because of the things I knew were going on.

[Gretski]

The news said this a.m. That he was coperating fully. He feels he did nothing wrong.
I am not yelling guilty here. But I will say ,In business there are rules you need to follow, with Uncle Sam. Cross over those lines, and it is fraud.
When you toss money aound like it is water, that will get you noticed.
First it spurs on the nut-swinging wanna be's. and creates the insta-friend.
But it also catches the eye of the people that question your business ethics. which if it smells shady, You will find the FBI poking in your business.

[Indy CTS-V]

Originally Posted by Gretski

The news said this a.m. That he was coperating fully. He feels he did nothing wrong.
I am not yelling guilty here. But I will say ,In business there are rules you need to follow, with Uncle Sam. Cross over those lines, and it is fraud.
When you toss money aound like it is water, that will get you noticed.
First it spurs on the nut-swinging wanna be's. and creates the insta-friend.
But it also catches the eye of the people that question your business ethics. which if it smells shady, You will find the FBI poking in your business.

Movie....American Gangster. Didnt Denzel burn that fur coat and hat after that boxing match when later he figured out that got him noticed as a player...and then subsequently shook down? Something about your post reminded me of that...lol

[ride4life32]

^^Yep thats how it happened, his wife screwed him over by giving him something that was too flashy for his taste but didnt want to deny his wife so he wore it. That and he had the best seats in the house.

[balls2dawalls]

If it looks like a duck, sounds like a duck, acts like a duck.... It's probably a duck.

It's a shame to hear all this. I valeted for one of his private birthday parties one time. He was a really nice guy

[Indy CTS-V]

This thread really should be re-titled as it really isnt a "take down" so to speak. Its just an investigation at this point.

Where he went wrong IMO. The registered securities. You get into federal area REAL quick when you go into registered securities and that is a WHOLE different world IMO. One with strict rules and guidelines that can and will get you investigated fairly quickly if things dont seem on the up and up.

Lets not lose sight of the fact that this is just an investigation right now.

[ride4life32]

Dibs on Veryon!!!!!!

[MR2TuRbZ]

Originally Posted by ride4life32

Dibs on Veryon!!!!!!

you can have that, but I'll take the Veyron.... and the CGT