JON'S CELL: A 57-year-old Milwaukee man is facing four counts of bankruptcy fraud and eleven counts of bank fraud after an indictment handed down by a federal grand jury on Oct. 7. According to court documents, the charges against the man stemmed from an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation that began back in April 2012, after the man filed for bankruptcy in 2011.
Court documents state that while the man acknowledged that he was around $20 million in debt at the time of the bankruptcy, he allegedly failed to disclose all of his holdings to the court when he filed. According to the indictment, the man, along with his son, reportedly set up shell companies to hide his assets, then transferred the ownership of various pieces of real estate over to his son and the shell companies. The indictment reports that this then allowed the man to report zero gross and net income even though the rental properties were allegedly producing around $30,000 per month.
Although the properties were eventually moved back into the man’s name during the bankruptcy after he was urged to do so by his bankruptcy attorneys, court records state that the man’s son opened accounts at different financial institutions. He then allegedly deposited checks made out to the shell companies and his father into the various accounts. These checks were not reported during the bankruptcy proceedings. Prosecutors say there were allegedly also various other attempts to hide assets during the bankruptcy, including hiding boat parts at an undisclosed location.
Defendants who are facing charges for bankruptcy and bank fraud could potentially benefit from the assistance of an experienced criminal attorney.
Source: Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel, “Ex-foreclosure king Todd Brunner accused of trying to hide $7 million” Cary Spivak, Oct. 07, 2014
