Editor's note: This Shark wishes that the judges would hold some of the "fat cats" living off estates in the Probate Court of Cook County "in custody". Lucius Verenus, Schoolmaster, ProbateSharks.com
Judge orders TV pitchman held in custody
Kevin Trudeau walks through the Dirksen U.S. Courthouse in Chicago, February 11, 2010. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
|
Late-night TV pitchman Kevin Trudeau, who has repeatedly flouted court orders to pay a multimillion-dollar fine stemming from his fraudulent infomercials, was ordered into custody Wednesday after racking up expenses that a federal judge found were "far beyond ordinary and necessary."
The order by U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman followed a Federal Trade Commission filing that took Trudeau to task for spending thousands of dollars from an undisclosed Australian bank account on haircuts, high-end meat products and cigars.
Those purchases and others were made after Gettleman, who has previously likened Trudeau to a financial puppet master, ordered Trudeau in July to transfer all of his hidden assets to a court-appointed receiver or risk going to jail, according to the FTC.
"Incarceration is necessary to coerce defendant to provide complete and accurate information regarding the assets he possesses or controls," Gettleman wrote Wednesday.
Trudeau's lawyer declined to comment.
Trudeau, 50, grew a business from a base in suburban Chicago, touting products such as pain-relief adhesive tape and a cancer cure involving coral calcium. In 2004 the FTC imposed a consent decree banning Trudeau from misrepresenting the contents of his hit book, "The Weight Loss Cure 'They' Don't Want You to Know About." But regulators say he violated the order a few years later with infomercials claiming the book was filled with "easy" techniques when it actually called for prescription hormone injections, a month of colon hydrotherapy and a 500-calorie-a-day diet.
Gettleman fined Trudeau nearly $38 million based on the number of "Weight Loss Cure" books sold.
Trudeau then went on the offensive, using his Internet radio broadcast and website to urge supporters to email the judge in support of the products he sells. Hundreds of messages came pouring in, crashing Gettleman's email account and bringing the normally mild-mannered judge's temper to a boil.
In July, Gettleman ordered Trudeau to transfer his assets to the receiver after the FTC pointed to Trudeau's allegedly complex network of overseas bank accounts and obscure companies set up in havens from Europe to the Caribbean. Gettleman warned that Trudeau would be allowed only "necessary living expenses."
On Monday the receiver filed a report to Gettleman, noting that Trudeau said in emails that he was "being very straight forward" and that "there are no hidden assets anywhere in the world." The receiver, however, had learned independently that Trudeau maintained a bank account in Australia that in January contained about $140,000, according to the report.
In a filing the same day, the FTC stated that Trudeau had used money from the Australian account, spending about $894 at Westmont Liquors, $780 at Whole Foods, $359 on haircuts, $1,058 on high-end meat products and $921 on cigars.
Gettleman ordered Trudeau to be questioned by the receiver and held overnight, according to officials. The judge set a court hearing for 11 a.m. Thursday, when the receiver is expected to relay to the court the findings of the interview.
cdizikes@tribune.com
csadovi@tribune.com
The order by U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman followed a Federal Trade Commission filing that took Trudeau to task for spending thousands of dollars from an undisclosed Australian bank account on haircuts, high-end meat products and cigars.
Those purchases and others were made after Gettleman, who has previously likened Trudeau to a financial puppet master, ordered Trudeau in July to transfer all of his hidden assets to a court-appointed receiver or risk going to jail, according to the FTC.
"Incarceration is necessary to coerce defendant to provide complete and accurate information regarding the assets he possesses or controls," Gettleman wrote Wednesday.
Trudeau's lawyer declined to comment.
Trudeau, 50, grew a business from a base in suburban Chicago, touting products such as pain-relief adhesive tape and a cancer cure involving coral calcium. In 2004 the FTC imposed a consent decree banning Trudeau from misrepresenting the contents of his hit book, "The Weight Loss Cure 'They' Don't Want You to Know About." But regulators say he violated the order a few years later with infomercials claiming the book was filled with "easy" techniques when it actually called for prescription hormone injections, a month of colon hydrotherapy and a 500-calorie-a-day diet.
Gettleman fined Trudeau nearly $38 million based on the number of "Weight Loss Cure" books sold.
Trudeau then went on the offensive, using his Internet radio broadcast and website to urge supporters to email the judge in support of the products he sells. Hundreds of messages came pouring in, crashing Gettleman's email account and bringing the normally mild-mannered judge's temper to a boil.
In July, Gettleman ordered Trudeau to transfer his assets to the receiver after the FTC pointed to Trudeau's allegedly complex network of overseas bank accounts and obscure companies set up in havens from Europe to the Caribbean. Gettleman warned that Trudeau would be allowed only "necessary living expenses."
On Monday the receiver filed a report to Gettleman, noting that Trudeau said in emails that he was "being very straight forward" and that "there are no hidden assets anywhere in the world." The receiver, however, had learned independently that Trudeau maintained a bank account in Australia that in January contained about $140,000, according to the report.
In a filing the same day, the FTC stated that Trudeau had used money from the Australian account, spending about $894 at Westmont Liquors, $780 at Whole Foods, $359 on haircuts, $1,058 on high-end meat products and $921 on cigars.
Gettleman ordered Trudeau to be questioned by the receiver and held overnight, according to officials. The judge set a court hearing for 11 a.m. Thursday, when the receiver is expected to relay to the court the findings of the interview.
cdizikes@tribune.com
csadovi@tribune.com
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for commenting.
Your comment will be held for approval by the blog owner.