DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS. [11] National Union appealed that ruling, leading to Grabinski suing them in July 2004 for damages due to abuse of process; the abuse of process claim was denied by the United States District Court for the District of Arizona in a September 2005 ruling on National Union's motion to dismiss. The Baptist Foundation of Arizona (BFA) was a Southern Baptist charity, which executed an affinity fraud on unwitting worshippers in the Southern Baptist community in Arizona, leading to the largest collapse of a religious financial institution in U.S. history. mps._queue.gptloaded.push(function() { The BFA opens a web site address www.bfaz.org to answer questions. Money & Investing. With Enrons collapse, Andersen earned the distinction of having been auditor for both the largest corporate bankruptcy and largest bankruptcy of a non-profit in U.S. history. var dynamic_yield_enabled = 1 '); BFA ultimately filed for bankruptcy, and thousands of elderly investors lost
The foundation was created 51 years ago by the Arizona Southern Baptist Convention to raise money and manage the endowments of Southern Baptist charities, and through its history, the foundation has provided a total of $1.3-million in gifts to church causes. At the center of the scandal is Crotts, a charismatic 53-year-old lawyer, who took over the BFA from his father in 1982. 'site' : 'cnbc-mobile' , 'https' : 'http') + '://pix.nbcuni.com/a-pii.gif?X=piiblock&S=' + mps.pagevars.instance + '&P=' + mps.pagevars.mpsid + '&A=' + i + '&U=' + encodeURIComponent(window.location.href) + '&_=' + window._mpspixZ; manager on the BFA audit lost their CPA licenses to practice and a third CPA
} These. than ever for auditors to employ sound fraud-detection audit procedures in
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Aug. 30, 1999 Pastor Richard A. Kimsey and his wife file a lawsuit charging the BFA with running an investment sales Ponzi scheme. Synopsis The Baptist Foundation of Arizona (BFA) was organized as an Arizona nonprofit organization primarily to help provide financial support for various Southern Baptist causes. Site by Mere. [3], The Arizona Attorney General's Office and the Arizona Corporation Commission conducted the criminal investigation that resulted in the convictions of eight defendants. The Arizona Republic reported that Novak had said Andersens circumstances have changed significantly since it was indicted March 14 on federal charges involving its auditing of Houston-based energy trader Enron. const name = ONE_TRUST_COOKIE_NAME; Presented a detailed analysis of The Baptist Foundation of Arizona scandal and won first place among five teams. Aug. 11, 1999 The Arizona Republic reports the foundations funds have been frozen as a result of the investigation. Then, learn how Dr. Mikos, a charming doctor with a lucrative practice, turns out to be a con artist defrauding Medicare. 'cag[type_source]' : 'CNBC US Source' , 'cat' : 'CNBC TV|Primetime Shows 2|American Greed' , Jalma Hunsinger, President and Director of Church Ventures (a company whose stated purpose was to build churches), paid $150,000 (equivalent to $196,000 in 2021). Managing editor at EthicsDaily.com from 2003-2009, Allen wrote more than 1,500 news stories during his tenure. [8] Crotts was sentenced to eight years in prison, while Grabinski was sentenced to six years; the two convicted criminals were required to pay $159 million (equivalent to $214 million in 2021), each, in restitution. Start Here; About Us. In August 2006, a jury found Crotts, the foundation's ex-president, and . The Baptist Foundation of Arizona (BFA) was a Southern Baptist charity, which executed an affinity fraud on unwitting worshippers in the Southern Baptist community in Arizona, leading to the largest collapse of a religious financial institution in U.S. history. script.setAttribute("src", "//www.npttech.com/advertising.js"); CONTENT_SELECTION_AND_MEASUREMENT: 7, 'adunits' : 'Default' , Sentencing was set for Sept. 29. Superior Ct. Maricopa County, CV 2002-005117. 'stitle' : 'Religious Prey | Dr. Mikos: American Greed 5' , mps._ext = mps._ext || {}; Hunsinger subsequently used the property as collateral to obtain a US$6.8M loan from the BFA. Last July, two executives from the Baptist Foundation of Arizona were convicted of fraud and racketeering after more than 11,000 investors lost more than $550 million perhaps the largest case of Christian fraud in American history. A grand jury in April 2001 returned indictments charging former BFA officials with 32 counts of fraud, theft and racketeering. Robert H. Colson, PhD, CPA
A written statement from the foundation says that at the completion of the bankruptcy proceedings and the creation of a new for-profit company, the Baptist Foundation of Arizona will no longer exist. In 1962, Pastor Glen Crotts became the organization's first president. })(); Profits from investments were supposed to be used to fund the churches' ministries and numerous charitable causes. 1991 to 1994 statements and an adverse opinion on the 1995 to 1997 financial
When
In a March 29 statement, the day after receiving notice from Andersen, the trust said one of the first steps will be to ask the mediator who presided over the settlement negotiations, retired federal judge Layn Phillips, to rule that Andersen has breached the agreement and to order Andersen to pay the $217 million as promised.. 'cag[device]' : 'mobile-touch' , The Baptist Foundation of Arizona filed for bankruptcy in federal court last week, owing nearly $600-million to 13,000 people who had bought securities from the organization. be taking place requires a higher degree of due diligence by auditors. Get this delivered to your inbox, and more info about our products and services. The Cacaces were among 11,000 investors who lost a combined $580 million when the Baptist Foundation of Arizona, or BFA, a registered nonprofit, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1999 in. "They had their faith shattered and faced the possible loss of all their retirement investments.". return true; The fund is $590 million in debt, far outstripping the $158 million Jim and Tammy Bakker bankruptcy scandal--and regulators believe it is among the nation's largest cases of "affinity fraud,". statements. Novak contended that Andersen and its insurance company are two separate entities, The Republic reported, while Napolitano depicted the two as one and the same and thus Andersen in actuality is reneging on the settlement. Wednesday, June 10, 2009. [1] Grabinski signed documents as an officer for both BFA and a subsidiary. return Object.values(OneTrustCategories).filter((c) => blockedCategories.includes(c)).length > 0; mps._adsheld.push(adunit) if (document.cookie.length > 0) { The state also is continuing to press criminal charges against five former BFA executives, including William Pierre Crotts, the former chief executive officer. Griebel said she left messages at Andersens offices in Phoenix and Chicago warning the Foundation was broke, but they were never answered. One BFA subsidiary, Arizona Southern Baptist New Church Ventures, had a stated purpose of financing new Southern Baptist churches in Arizona. Login Here. Controversial Arizona pastor Steven Anderson, the firebrand KJV-Onlyist from Faithful word Baptist Church in Tempe, AZ, has been permanently banned from Youtube, having his entire operation shout down from multiple accounts. mps._queue.gptloaded = mps._queue.gptloaded || []; earlier fraud standard, SAS 82. "host" : 'mps.cnbc.com', }; return false; }; } By watching and reviewing the videos about the Baptist Found of Arizona (BFA), I noticed that Arthur Andersen can are designed to be unpredictable and unexpected. Things are moving quickly now in the sex scandal involving the three oldest sons of Steven Anderson of Tempe, Arizona's favorite SPLC hate group Faithful Word Baptist Church. console.log('PUB-GDPR-CHECK oneTrustCookie matches: ', matches); } (a) The transfer or acquisition of the controlling interest oc-curred within a taxable transfer period. [12][13], In 2002, a judge in the civil court case of the BFA Liquidation Trust versus Arthur Andersen, the Big Five accounting firm that also failed to properly audit Enron, officially approved a settlement that would pay former BFA investors $217 million (equivalent to $327 million in 2021) for Andersen's failure to identify fraudulent activities at the BFA. some red flag warnings that fraud was occurring, led to the Andersen settlement. But the foundation has operated independently of the convention, and state regulators say it is unlikely that the statewide group would be held liable for the foundations actions. Baptist Convention. 'nid' : '100000099' var _qs = window.location.href; The Bear Foundation's contributions to local nonprofits easily number in the tens of millions, and include a $4.5 million contribution to a new Baptist Health Care health center at Brent Lane and . Feb. 19, 2002 4:00 pm ET. recently issued SAS 99, Consideration of Fraud in a Financial Statement
cStart = cStart + name.length + 1; The lead partner on Andersen's disputed 1985 audit of Lincoln was Jay S. Ozer, who also served as lead auditor of the Baptist Foundation of Arizona. At the time of its failure in 1999, it was the largest affinity fraud that had ever occurred in the United States, with a total loss estimated at US$550 million (equivalent to $895 million in 2021). {"@context": "https://schema.org","@type": "WebPage","url": "https://www.cnbc.com/id/100000099","keywords": ["CNBC TV","Primetime Shows 2","American Greed","source:tagname:CNBC US Source"]} Former general counsel Thomas Grabinski was convicted of three counts of fraud and one count of illegally conducting an enterprise. mps.__timer = Date.now ? assets were receivables from the insolvent ALO. fiduciary requirements governing nonbank passive trustees of IRAs. let cEnd = document.cookie.indexOf(';', cStart); 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Audit. Also in 1998, an alternative Phoenix newspaper, the New Times, ran a series of 13 investigative reports alleging fraud and insider deals. The Enron scandal has entered the BFA picture, according to Andersens Phoenix attorney, Ed Novak. if (!mps._ext || !mps._ext.loaded) { The BFA carried out a number of illegal activities in perpetrating affinity fraud against Southern Baptist worshipers in Arizona. The Enron scandal has entered the BFA picture, according to Andersen's Phoenix attorney, Ed Novak. Along with companies like Enron and Worldcom, it was audited by accounting firm Arthur Andersen, giving investors a false sense of security. Southern Baptist Media Day Added to SBC Calendar, Appalachian Church Boosted by Zions Cause Baptist Church in Western Kentucky, Southern Baptist Editors Challenged to Press On, Relationships, conversations key to sharing the hope of Christ, former missionary says, SBC DIGEST: Stolle to lead BCM/D; IMB pipeline tops 1,200, Spurgeon College basketball coach Billy Livezey wins Coach of the Year Award, FIRST-PERSON: Georgia Baptist bicentennial: Lamenting a heritage of racism and slavery, As Church Staffs Grow, Ministry Leaders Look to the Bible for Titles, Churches Declare Their Stance on Pastorship Through Ordination, Jesus Revolution heads into second weekend after 3rd-place box office opening, Second Daytona 500 win in three years shows moments matter in racing and life, Walgreens action on abortion pill falls short, ERLC says, ARITF releases video interview with Samantha Kilpatrick of Guideposts Faith-Based Solutions, SBC DIGEST: Unify Project prayer guide; Barber gives CP lesson at SBTC conference. console.log('PUB-GDPR-CHECK all blocked. was placed on probation, requiring that his work be monitored for two years
. renewed efforts to prevent such accounting failings in the future. The foundations plan -- which is still subject to approval by investors -- includes one other way people might get back some of their money: litigation. in 1985, which highlights just how dramatically the foundations mission
var setAdblockerCookie = function(adblocker) { Baptist Foundation of Arizona (Southern Baptist charity) BFA: Books for Africa (St. Paul, MN) BFA: Body Fat Analysis (biology) BFA: British Fantasy Award (British Fantasy Society; UK) BFA: Baseball for All (various locations) BFA: Botswana Football Association (Botswana) BFA: Blank Firing Attachment: BFA: Benefit Fraud Assessment: BFA Start Here; Testimonials; Contact Us; Start Here; Testimonials; Contact Us; Location. The Baptist
const EEA_REGION_COUNTRY_CODES = ['AT', 'BE', 'BG', 'HR', 'CY', 'CZ', 'DK', 'EE', 'FI', 'FR', 'DE', 'GR', 'HU', 'IS', 'IE', 'IT', 'LV', 'LI', 'LT', 'LU', 'MT', 'NL', 'NO', 'PL', 'PT', 'RO', 'SK', 'SI', 'ES', 'SE', 'CH', 'TR', 'GB']; By SUSAN DONALDSON JAMES. Learning its principal note issuer was ALO, she checked public records and found its unaudited balance sheet listed liabilities of $109.7 million and assets at minus $6.9 million. In BFA's early days, it focused its attention regarding the disclosure of related parties and the recognition of losses,
honesty and integrity. const OneTrustCategories = { One, Karen Paetz, set up a lunch meeting with an Arthur Andersen official in February 1997, warning about ALOs losses and encouraging auditors to request detailed financial statements for both New Church Ventures and ALO. in that it represents the largest cash settlement for a nonprofit case and
disguise BFAs tenuous financial condition. Both options for investors have limitations. })(); 2023 Southern Baptist Convention. //begin OneTrust Redirect June 2, 2010, 9:03 AM. The Mirage But sometimes in the. Site by Mere. Information received from independent sources
Twenty years later, Glen Crotts' son, William Pierre "Bill" Crotts, became the organization's second president. mps._log('**** LOADED: Google PII Fix - cnbc-cms-header-insert'); Reglious Prey: Baptist Foundation of Arizona. Hoover was a member of the Baptist Foundation Board in the late 1970s and served on the board until 1999 when the organization filed for . 'subtype' : 'primetime_show' , They can either cash out of the foundation, receiving 20 per cent of the value of their investments and the interest due to them, or elect to receive shares of stock in a new for-profit company that will be publicly traded. between the foundation and these corporations were designed to achieve the
const ONE_TRUST_COOKIE_NAME = 'OptanonConsent'; Perceiving a lack of response, most resigned. incorporated both nonprofit entities. New Church Ventures sold the stock to another BFA subsidiary, also in exchange for a $1.6 million reduction in a credit line, which turned around and sold for $3.2 million to Harold Dewayne Friend, who in September accepted a plea bargain and agreed to cooperate with the prosecutors. By Jonathan Weil Staff Reporter of The Wall Street Journal. )+[a-zA-Z]{2,}))/; Through it all, Andersen continued to give BFA clean audits, until the Arizona Corporation Commission forced the foundation to stop selling securities in August 1999. Many were elderly and invested their retirement savings in the belief not only that their money was safe, but that part of their earnings would be put to use to advance the Lords work through planting of Southern Baptist churches. both in and outside of management. "These verdicts are a victory for thousands of victims who believed the promises made by the defendants," Attorney General Terry Goddard said in a statement. 'path' : '/id/100000099' , on funding church start-ups and providing aid for children and the elderly. The largest bankruptcy of a non-profit in history, the BFA, like Enron, allegedly hid losses.