I was reading a Book by John Grisham , ‘A Time To Kill”(He also authored ‘The pelican Brief and The Firm, both were filmed).
It is a story about a Black being sent to the gallows for a murdering two rapists who raped his small daughter.
The Book deals with American White Black Problem .’Law among other things.
There is a character in the story, a Bishop who tries to steal the Funds,$ 6000, he collected for the Accused.
I was wondering whether some body would become so low in Life., though I am aware of the swindles by the Church and some Bishops.But individually the the rake of by a Bishop may not come anywhere near a %2 Million Dollar swindled by Martin Sigillito—a bishop in the American Anglican Convocation and a St. Louis attorney—convinced 200-plus people to do more than just consider it: they actually entrusted him with their money to invest in a financial venture. But this venture turned out to be an old-fashioned Ponzi scheme, and in April of this year, Sigillito was convicted of leading a conspiracy that swindled $52 million from victim investors
He is an Attorney as well.
I am also providing Links at the end of the post some scams by the Clergy(from The FBI Files) as well.
Please search the FBI site.
Well , Men of God!?
Story:
How the scam began. In late 2000, Sigillito opened a law office but didn’t actually practice law—instead, he advertised his “international business consulting services.” One of the “services” he offered was participation in the British Lending Program (BLP), transformed by Sigillito into a Ponzi scheme. Through the BLP, investors could “loan” money to a real estate developer in the United Kingdom for short periods of time, mostly one year, at high rates of return—between 10 and 48 percent.
This real estate developer, according to Sigillito, had a knack for spotting undervalued properties he could flip for a profit, had options on land that would become valuable when re-zoned, and had inside connections with British authorities. It sounded like a win-win for investors.
Unfortunately, this British developer was not the wunderkind Sigillito made him out to be—he was just another link in the criminal conspiracy.
How did Sigillito convince his investors to part with their money? He exploited his personal ties to people and particular groups he was affiliated with—like his church, social clubs, professional acquaintances, family, and neighbors—in a technique known as affinity fraud. He also held himself up as an expert in international law and finance and claimed he was a lecturer at Oxford University in England (when in reality he had simply taken part in a summer legal program at Oxford).
Related articles
- Former Bishop Pleads Guilty In Ponzi Scheme (connecticut.cbslocal.com)