I’ve done more than a few posts on the topic of Trout Point Lodge since it first appeared on the pages of the Times Picayune back in January 2010. I’ll be honest and say I still have no clue why the powers that be at the Times Picayune sold out their own reporter and retracted a factually correct story but I’ve grown accustomed to seeing strange things in the media in New Orleans so I simply accept the “what is” there. In a way this is a simple story that had the twist of a controlling grifter in Vaughn Perret mixed into the middle of the narrative. Vaughn is a literal one trick pony in how he deals with people of making threats and more threats of legal action whenever the PR doesn’t go his way. A great way to begin would be to link the Channel 4 story on the ethics complaint made against Aaron Broussard as reported back in January 2010 but I was a stinker to prove the extent to which the NOLA media is compromised on reporting in Jefferson Parish so we must go back on Twitter to August 18 where I teased the girls at Trout Point:
Crime watchdog seeks ethics probe into Broussard business dealings http://t.co/s6WRGQ0 Looks like @troutpointlodge forgot one LMAO!!!
— Slabbed New Media (@SlabbedNewMedia) August 18, 2011
Knowing Charles Leary and/or Vaughn Perret have Eric Paulsen on speed dial I also printed a copy for my records as I was fairly certain WWL would “404” the story as soon as the girls bitched (and they dutifully complied) so it is there we begin with the story Crime watchdog seeks ethics probe into Broussard business dealings: (fair use claimed):
The Metropolitan Crime Commission is asking the Louisiana ethics board to determine if Jefferson Parish president Aaron Broussard has violated the state ethics code.
In a letter to the ethics administration, the Crime Commission questions whether it was proper for Broussard to solicit business for Lagniappe Industries, the insurance firm owned by his former chief administrative officer, Tim Whitmer, and to accept $5,000 for legal work he has acknowledged doing for Lagniappe.
In addition, MCC president Rafael Goyeneche calls for the crime commission to determine if Broussard profited from parish contractors using a vacation lodge the parish president and his wife own in Nova Scotia.
“We’re asking the ethics administration to determine if Mr. Broussard enriched himself by inviting or encouraging any of these potential parish vendors to go up there and utilize his property or invest in his property,” Goyeneche told Eyewitness News on Thursday.
In a separate matter, since records reveal Broussard has accepted hundreds of state court appointments since 2004 to represent people involved in lawsuits whom the court can’t find, Goyeneche questions if Broussard considers his position as parish president a part time job .
“Where he can devote time to a legal practice that not only involves Lagniappe Industries and earning a $5,000 fee over several months and also soliciting business for Lagniappe, but additionally accepting 50 cases that we could find in 2009 in which the court appointed him to represent an absent litigant? He made thousands of dollars doing that,” said Goyeneche.
WWL tried to reach Broussard for comment. A statement released late Thursday did not address his outside legal work and said he isn’t responding to the ethical questions, on the advice of his attorney.
“Mr. Broussard has requested a copy (of the Metropolitan Crime Commission’s) letter from the Ethics Committee to discern the allegations made in order to fully cooperate with the Ethics Administration to reveal the actual facts of his ownership and the management of his property,” the statement said.
“The Commission’s policy is not to confirm or deny receipt of such contact. If one is made, it is referred to a committee that determines if an investigation will be conducted. Mr. Broussard reaffirms that he has properly disclosed his ownership of property in Nova Scotia on his Louisiana Board of Ethics Personal Financial Disclosure Report and that he will contest that this property was rented to business people holding public contracts with Jefferson Parish. Respecting the confidentiality policy of the Ethics Administration, Mr. Broussard will withhold further comment on this matter on the advice of his attorney.”
Simple right? Evidently Rich Rainey began researching this matter and he found that the Nova Scotia property known as Trout Point had several local, politically connected owners but that didn’t stop Perret from sending his bottom bitch Charles Leary out to mislead and threaten. For that we circle back to my post on the topic from January, 2010 which excerpted one of Rainey’s reports:
A photo caption in some Thursday editions of The Times-Picayune said that former Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard owns a stake in a luxury development centered around Trout Point Lodge in Nova Scotia. An accompanying story quoted Bennett Powell, owner of a Metairie insurance claims adjusting firm that does business with Jefferson Parish, as saying that Broussard’s property was Trout Point Lodge. Charles Leary, managing director of Trout Point, said Broussard has no “ownership or management involvement with Trout Point Lodge, Limited.” Corporate records in Canada do not list Broussard as an officer of Trout Point Lodge Limited.
Broussard, “does not and has never had any ownership or management involvement with Trout Point Lodge, Limited.” The message went on to say Broussard owns a “vacation home on the same road.”
Those assertions are bald face lies. I frankly never understood how a news organization with the cojones take on Garlandfill would run like scared children from grifting gay men in Nova Scotia but it is what it is folks. And the reason I say that Leary lied? Mainly because I have been talking to former employees whom I’ve granted anonymity so as to spare them the hassle of defending a frivolous SLAPP suit in Canada:
In answer to the question as to who handled the money for Aaron’s property? Definitely Trout Point.
This makes sense and confirms a long-held suspicion that the girls were the fiscal agents for all the cabins owned by Louisianans close to the Lodge including Aaron Broussard. That said the Lodge’s financial records would certainly contain evidence to either support the pay-to-Trout Point to play in Jefferson Parish allegations that are at the heart of this story. My chatty new friend didn’t stop there though. You see the girls have left a trail of financial wreckage in Canada reportedly screwing over trade venders and others building the Lodge and that harebrained exotic cheese farm La Ferme D’Acadie where they shafted the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency.
So now that I’m sourced on the exact nature of the business relationship between the owners of Trout Point including Aaron’s former council aid Danny Abel we next must explore exactly who owns Trout Point as all the cabins and the lodge are not under one umbrella. Luckily for us I made several friends in Canada and one of them was kind enough to run the entire area through a local database. This is where it all really gets good:
MAIN LODGE
189 TROUT POINT ROAD
OWNED BY CHARLES LEARY AND VAUGHN PERRET
ASSESSED VALUE FOR TAXES 798,000 COMMERCIAL, 6,200 RESIDENTIAL
REGISTERED MECHANICS LEAN OF 80,240.00 BY JILL FIRTH CONSTRUCTION (company did the stone work)
—————————————————————-
LOT # 9
BRYAN KRANTZ
NO BUILDING
ASSESSED VALUE 31,200
—————————————————————–
RIVERBEND LODGE ( former Marie Krantz property )
OWNED BY AARON BROUSSARD ( no other owners that I see )
ASSESSED FOR 210,800 COMMERCIAL, 31,200 RESIDENTIAL
INTERESTING — IN DECEMBER 2010 AARONS DEED BECAME JOINT TENANTS WITH VAUGHN AND CHARLES AND ONLY THEY SHOW UP ON ASSESSMENT NOW AS OWNERS.
A MORTGAGE WAS TAKEN OUT THAT SAME MONTH FOR 231,000 WITH HSBC BANK OF CANADA IN MARKUM ONTARIO.
THE MORTGAGE WAS NOT REGISTERED UNTILL JANUARY 17 2011 ( this could have been deliberate or just a slow lawyer )
——————————————————————
LOT # 6
OWNED BY BRYAN KRANTZ
NO BUILDING
ASSESSED 31,200
——————————————————————
LOT 3-B AND 7-D
SOLD BY RALPH FONTCUBERTA IN JAN 21 2010
TO PRAKA-NOVA SCOTIA LLC,
7216 STONELEIGH DRIVE
HARAHAN LA
——————————————————————
LOT # 11
OWNED BY CALVIN AND CYNTHIA FAYARD
ASSESSED 31,200 RES. AND 9,100 RESOURCE
——————————————————————–
81 TROUT POINT ROAD ( think its known as Cub Cottage )
OWNED BY AARON BROUSSARD AND KAREN PARKER
ASSESSED 102,000 RESIDENTIAL
INTERESTING- SOLD OCTOBER 14 2010 TO PRAVENCHANDRA DESAI
———————————————————————-
79 TROUT POINT ROAD ( BLACK BEAR COTTAGE )
OWNED BY AARON BROUSSARD ( BOUGHT BY AARON 1999 )
ASSESSED VALUE 169,800 AND 5,900
INTERESTING- ON AUGUST 4TH 2011 A REQUEST WAS REGISTERED TO CHANGE RESIDENTIAL INTEREST, BENEFITS AND BURDENS FROM AARON TO PATRICIA AND DONALD ZERANGUE.
———————————————————————–
THE GATEHOUSE
ASSESSED 193,700
OWNED BY
ROY D’AQAILLE
AARON BROUSSARD
LARRY STOULIG JR.
JAMES E SMITH JR.
KEMPT WIDERNESS LODGE SERVICES ( I assume this is Trout Point Lodge) since they service all the properties.
OK folks this is a lot of info to absorb. Some of these names we’ve seen here on Slabbed several times such as Peter Butler Jr’s PRAKA Nova Scotia. Others were mentioned in other reports on the Lodge. This much is clear, Aaron Broussard had a very close relationship with the owners of Trout Point Lodge as they handled the money from his rentals and he sent them business. The next question we must ask ourselves is do these activities constitute money laundering because if an illegal act occurred Leary and his blowbuddy Perret along with Danny Abel have lots of explaining to do. Stay tuned as we have more on the mystery on the shores of the Tusket River.
Publisher’s note: WWL TV Restored the Broussard Ethics complaint news story to their website in July 2015.
http://bfmcorporation.com/ralphfotcuberta.asp
as named above. jp public works vendor.
this might be the zerangue. http://www.clovisroche.com/management.html
I get the game now. The Pouty Trouty boys are successful con artists who scam banks and government lending agencies to give them money for businesses that do not exist. Then they abuse the court system to viciously sue, slander and malign everyone who catches them in the act. They leave a trail of unpaid bills everywhere they go, the common thread being nobody can match up the existing business with the defunct business. That is why here in NS they have about 18 different corporate names floating around, most of these pulled by Joint Stocks for unpaid fees.
Now you are right, the TP had them and just as fast, let them go. They didn't even bother trying to link River bend, Kempt Wilderness Services and Trout Point Lodge as one and the same, owned by all parties mentioned here. And it fucking stinks the Globe and Mail gave them glowing press without doing a bit of research. You can't google Trout Point without tripping over this blog.
Until we as a society stand up and report these assholes and pester the proper authorities to do their due diligence, crime is always going to pay. I am going to write some letters and wake some key people up and see if we can't give the Pouty Trouty boys something to Pout about.
You nailed it Novelle. I have taken it upon myself to email Oliver Moore at the Globe and Mail inquiring if Leary and Perret ghost wrote or paid them for those reviews given what Kirk Cheyfitz said about how they treat their guests. I have yet to receive a reply but hope Mr Moore can clarify that for me before they get checked into the Do Slabb Inn.
And yes the Google gods favor this little project called Slabbed so anyone that does basic checking will well understand exactly what they are dealing with in the girls.
Novelle remember that review from Spain on Trip Advisor that was written dead in the middle of winter? Trout Point closes for the winter so again we have solid proof that the girls write their own Trip Advisor reviews.
Perret and Leary and all their SLAPP suit threats bother me not one bit. My own opinion is they are cowards but I have some paper for them should they ever crawl out from under their rock in Nova Scotia and set foot back down here or maybe I'll follow the treaty and have them served in Canada. Meantime I have plenty of time to track down every lead and leave no stone unturned. The response from our new friends in Nova Scotia has been fantastic.
sop
The HSBC mortgage is an interesting lead, who borrowed the money for what?
Validation of Divine Design …………..They can't procreate.
They adopt each other instead Patricia. I'll roll that out next.
sop
Roy D'Aquila
Demartini Leblanc D'Aquila and Volk = Kenner law firm
D'Aquila handled all of Aaron's stuff.
Al Leblanc part of the Rat Pack
Demartini deceased by now much senior to them
Only tangentially related…. Caroline Fayard, daughter of Calvin and Cynthia, decided today not to run for any Louisiana statewide office. She ran for Lt. Governor last year and lost.
There's been some news lately regarding an ethics petition filed against Caroline and her campaign organization, Calvin, Cynthia, brother Calvin 3rd, sister Chalyn, and some Fayard LLCs. Something about allegedly donating $210,000 to the DEMOPAC who turned around the next day and bought a media package for Caroline Fayard for $209k. Their lawyers tried to have the whole matter sealed, but the judge wasn't up for those games.
So, now the Fayards are bringing suit challenging the constitutionality of Louisiana's campaign finance law.
I'm sure the Fayards know what they're doing when it comes to campaign finance matters.
Patricia Zerangue is likely Aaron Broussard's ex-wife Patricia Broussard. Source: 8/13/10 TP obit for Anna Mary Cook Barilleau.
Donald Zerangue is a former campaign contributor from long ago but more importantly is or was business partners in 3 or so or more or less businesses with Carl Eberts / Carl J. Eberts. Patricia married Zerangue apparently. Carl Eberts' wife Betty is her sister which means that Carl Eberts was Aaron Broussard's brother in law. Source: TP.
Look up Carl Eberts in the TP archives – Kenner government land deals, Rivertown, Kenner Development Corp, Baroni, the family of Sheriff Frank Clancy (as in Brian Dupepe (Bryan?), the lord of Laketown and jefe of the Kenner Convention Bureau is his grandson), etc., it all goes way back. And casinos. And Mamoulides. And the Galleria (via mamo). Dating back years. It's all public record and yet not reported if that makes sense. Source: TP
Clovis & Roche – they do collections, And part of that seems to be casino collections, Maybe even in Canada. Again this is on the internet. Source: internet (google "clovis & roche" + casino)
4401 N I-10 Service Rd: – check out the assessment online: it is at zero. as in "0". But it is obviously a commercial building with at least one major accounting/collections firm in it, not to mention several other companies between Zerangue and Eberts like Southern Land. Eberts has at least 2-3 at that same address. Source: LA SOS online database + the JP assessor site
So many of these names, including Fayard and James Smith, seem to tie in with the days when the casino gold rush was on.
http://www.tulane.edu/~rivgate/notes_ch7anote4.html
Guiness : I'll drink to that and your suspicion that Aaron Broussard transferred equity in his 100% interest in 79 Trout point Rd. to his ex-wife ,who as you say may have married a Zerangue, to satisfy her 1/2 interest in 81 Trout Point Rd. which was community property. That way he did not have to pay her cash for her 1/2 interest in 81 Trout Point Rd.and could use that cash for defense attorneys.But then why is 81 Trout Point still in both their names. Aaron's matrimonial division of community property in Jefferson Parish Clerk of Court's office could reveal information on Trout Point mysteries if it hasn't been sealed.
I would like to know when the FBI is going to audit some of the many under assessed commercial properties of Jefferson Parish political cronies like the assessment of "0" for the commercial bldg. at 4401 N. I -10 Service Rd., Metairie that you have cited.
Maybe Slabbed Nation needs to do a story just on all the under assessed commercial property that has been exposed in posts like the large commercial building on the westbank that houses all the westbank voting machines and which is partially owned by an ex-jefferson parish employee and big politico.
Chehardy has stepped down as JP Assessor but what kind of legacy of under assessed property has he left Jefferson with.
Lockem – here's a thought on that.
The 4401 N. I-10 Service Rd Property (which is indeed a fully functioning, large two floor commercial property0 has no entry in the "Property Description" field. Clovis & Roche, C&R Credit, Zerangue and Eberts are all addressed there.
Note the Desai name above, it is under "PRAVENCHANDRA DESAI". The jefferson Report, looking at Broussard's own disclosure report, as it as "Pravin Desai".
http://thejeffersonreport.com/?p=1948
The Super 8 Motel at 2421 Clearview, previously noted here on this fine site as the whereabouts of Daniel Glynn Abel, shows up as:
"Parcel# Owner Location Description Assessment Action
3821969300 DESAI HOLDING LLC 2421 CLEARVIEW PWKY 0"
That is a HOTEL in a major city with an assessment of ZERO, Zip. Nil. "0". Nada.
—Remarkably the description field is again….. EMPTY. in both instances you find the property by searching by the company name in the first name field, give it a shot.
This is Desai Holding, per the LA SOS:
'DESAI HOLDINGS, LLC Limited Liability Company METAIRIE Active
Business: DESAI HOLDINGS, LLC
Charter Number: 35607639 K
Registration Date: 12/12/2003
Domicile Address
2421 CLEARVIEW PKWY.
METAIRIE, LA 70001-1239
Mailing Address
C/O NIPUN DESAI
2421 CLEARVIEW PKWY.
METAIRIE, LA 70001-1239
Status
Status: Active
Annual Report Status: Not In Good Standing for failure to file Annual Report
File Date: 12/12/2003
Last Report Filed: 11/23/2009
Type: Limited Liability Company
Registered Agent(s)
Agent: NIPUN DESAI
Address 1: 2421 CLEARVIEW PKWY.
City, State, Zip: METAIRIE, LA 70001-1239
Appointment Date: 12/12/2003
Officer(s) Additional Officers: No
Officer: NIPUN DESAI
Title: Member
Address 1: 2421 CLEARVIEW PKWY.
City, State, Zip: METAIRIE, LA 70001-1239
Amendments on File
No Amendments on file"
That is obviously under the name Nipun Desai.
However Pravin Desai has these businesses:
DESAI, PRAVIN Member of “SAVITA INVESTMENTS LLC” METAIRIE
DESAI, PRAVIN Member of “BAPOOJI VENTURES LLC” METAIRIE
DESAI, PRAVIN Member of “DHIRAJ INVESTMENTS, L.L.C.” METAIRIE
DESAI, PRAVIN Director of “DELHI REALTY, INC.” TERRELL
DESAI, PRAVIN Agent of “SAVITA INVESTMENTS LLC” METAIRIE
DESAI, PRAVIN Agent of “BAPOOJI VENTURES LLC” METAIRIE
DESAI, PRAVIN Director of “OM-SHIV, INC.” TERRELL (TX)
In every single one of the Metairie businesses Desai's address is shown as "2421 CLEARVIEW PKWY." And that is the address of the Super 8 Motel. Weird, huh?
Nipun P. Desai – you can look up the several investment and oddly named businesses under that name on LA SOS, but in several he is listed as Nipun P. desai, very possibly either a brother, other relative, or possible even teh same guy (perhaps "P" is for Pravin/Pravenchandra. In fact the 5/18/96 TP reflects that LSU awarded a large number of degrees (Geaux Tigers) including to one "Nipun Pravinchandra Desai" (he got a masters, it does not say in what), so that must be Aaron's guy.
About Fontcuberta, I feel like this requires no explanation – everyone understands the role in campaign fundraising, gala events, meals, contributions and most especially contracts this guy has gotten through the City of Kenner & JP, as reported by the TP over the last 20 or so years, right? One key question about the properties, whoever owned them, or whatever entity, is whether parish vendors or contractors were involved. Well apparently -if- the above is correct, the answer is yes.
Fontcuberta also appears under BFM and they had ties to CDM in the past. Look it up in the TP archives it's all there.
As Jr, has it – and this is so, so succinct – Fontcuberta is a "jp public works vendor." That's really funny and beyond prescient because after all the Karen Parker / Aaron Broussard Nova Scotia venture in both LA & NS was called Public Works Inc. How telling is that.
Nipun "Nick" Desai – Hugh Sibley right-hand man. One and the same.
Not`All: apparently.
This is the listing for Nipun Desai / Nipun Desai under the LA SOS:
DESAI, NIPUN Manager of “TRAIN CAR, L.L.C.” METAIRIE
DESAI, NIPUN Manager of “OMEGA MEDICAL STAFFING, L.L.C.” METAIRIE
DESAI, NIPUN Agent of “OMEGA MEDICAL STAFFING, L.L.C.” GREENSBURG
DESAI, NIPUN Agent of “DESAI HOLDINGS, LLC” METAIRIE
DESAI, NIPUN Member of “N-CUBE, LLC” METAIRIE
DESAI, NIPUN Member of “OMEGA MEDICAL STAFFING, L.L.C.” METAIRIE
DESAI, NIPUN Member of “LONGVUE PROPERTIES, L.L.C.” GREENSBURG
DESAI, NIPUN Member of “DESAI HOLDINGS, LLC” METAIRIE
DESAI, NIPUN P. Member of “GALAXY SOLUTIONS, L.L.C.” GREENSBURG
DESAI, NIPUN P. Agent of “GALAXY ENTERPRISES, L.L.C.” METAIRIE
DESAI, NIPUN P. Agent of “CREATIVE CLEANING SOLUTIONS, L.L.C.” GREENSBURG
DESAI, NIPUN P. Agent of “GALAXY SOLUTIONS, L.L.C.” GREENSBURG
DESAI, NIPUN P. Agent of “GALAXY PROPERTIES, L.L.C.” GREENSBURG
DESAI, NIPUN P. Manager of “GALAXY SOLUTIONS, L.L.C.” GREENSBURG
DESAI, NIPUN P. Manager of “CREATIVE CLEANING SOLUTIONS, L.L.C.” GREENSBURG
DESAI, NIPUN P. Manager of “GALAXY PROPERTIES, L.L.C.” GREENSBURG
DESAI, NIPUN P. Manager of “GALAXY ENTERPRISES, L.L.C.” METAIRIE
DESAI, NIPUN P. Member of “GALAXY ENTERPRISES, L.L.C.” METAIRIE
DESAI, NIPUN P. Member of “GALAXY PROPERTIES, L.L.C.” GREENSBURG
DESAI, NIPUN P. Member of “CREATIVE CLEANING SOLUTIONS, L.L.C.” GREENSBURG
This one:
DESAI, NIPUN Manager of “TRAIN CAR, L.L.C.” METAIRIE
Turns up this:
http://slabbed.wordpress.com/2009/06/04/the-advocate-lends-background-william-sibleys-unshareable-need/
Which links this:
http://slabbed.files.wordpress.com/2009/06/sibley-harrah-court-docs.pdf
And links this:
http://theadvocate.com/news/46870997.html?c=1280932985093
{But it's gone, so I will repost the article for the sake of completeness}:
6/4/09 BR Advocate:
"Greensburg lawyer accumulated huge debts *** Laundering of drug money investigated
A Greensburg lawyer arrested on a criminal count of laundering drug money faced mounting financial problems as he allegedly worked with an international cocaine ring, court records show.
Between October 2001 and February 2008, William Hugh Sibley , 62, amassed $4.7 million in unpaid debts, unpaid federal income taxes, interest and associated fees, according to federal and state court judgments and Internal Revenue Service liens against Sibley.
In a May 2008 indictment unsealed earlier this year, prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney's Office in Houston accused Sibley of using bank accounts to hide drug money and of accepting, counting and distributing that money for the ring that distributed "multi-kilogram" cocaine shipments, court records show.
Sibley's alleged involvement with the ring goes back to September 2002 and extends up until he was indicted, the indictment says.
Extending into Mexico, Venezuela and the United States, the cocaine ring is headed by Alejandro Flores-Cacho, who was also named in the indictment but remains at large, federal prosecutors said.
Of that $4.7 million in unpaid debt, Sibley still has more than $2.5 million in unpaid loans and late fees owed to casinos in Baton Rouge, Atlantic City, N.J., and New Orleans, according to court records.
Between January 2007 and February 2008, the Internal Revenue Service filed nearly $2.2 million in tax liens against him for unpaid income taxes owed in 2003, 2004 and 2006, records in the Tangipahoa Parish Courthouse show.
The casino loans – in one case a series of 11 bounced $10,000 checks written on the same day – appear to have been made between October 2001 and January 2002, court records show.
Court judgments to force Sibley to pay the loans were filed between November 2002 and February 2004 after lawsuits were filed, records show. Judgments and other documents obtained do not indicate for what purpose Sibley sought the loans.
The debts are with the former Argosy Casino in Baton Rouge, now the Belle of Baton Rouge; the Atlantic City Hilton in Atlantic City; and Harrah's Casino in New Orleans when it was still owned by the Jazz Casino Company LLC, records show.
Deputies with the U.S. Marshal's Service in Baton Rouge arrested Sibley on May 28 in Greensburg on a single count of conspiracy to launder monetary instruments, prosecutors said.
Sibley was released Friday on a $100,000 bond and is headed to U.S. District Court this morning in Houston for his initial appearance, prosecutors have said.
Sibley's friends and acquaintances said Tuesday that they were surprised to see news accounts of the allegations about him.
Denham Springs lawyer A. Shelby Easterly III said Sibley has been "for more than 30 years a personal friend and colleague" and said he plans to stand by his friend.
"I have faith in the American system that he will be given every presumption of innocence until he is proven guilty," Easterly said.
The conspiracy spelled out in the indictment involved transactions and drop-offs of cash across the southern and southwestern United States totaling nearly $11.7 million.
Other players named in addition to Sibley and Flores-Cacho are accused of organizing and transporting drugs and cash and using that drug money to buy aircraft to move the money and cocaine.
But the prosecutors provide limited information about how Sibley moved money around and do not say how much money he handled or why he became involved in the first place.
Sibley has been practicing law since 1971 and has been involved with a number of high-profile class-action suits along with teams of other lawyers. Some of that litigation has resulted in multimillion-dollar payouts.
Angela Dodge, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Houston, said she cannot comment beyond the indictment. Sibley's attorney, James Manasseh, has declined comment.
Plaintiffs' attorney Daniel Becnel Jr. said Sibley worked with him in the past but said that he saw less and less of him in recent years after Sibley lost his wife and his health worsened.
Becnel claimed Sibley owes him money, too: $250,000 for an old real estate deal. He said he did not push the issue until recently by filing suit in St. John the Baptist Parish – after he got an IRS lien against Sibley a few weeks ago.
"I really felt sorry for him because of his health," said Becnel, who heads a Reserve firm that has handled several major class-action suits.
More recently, in suits filed in the 21st Judicial District Court in February and June 2008, First Guaranty Bank has tried to get Sibley to pay back two loans totaling about $927,800.
Nearly $97,400 of that has been paid but the rest is still in litigation, records show."
There is a lot more on that from the BR Advocate. There are also reports about Sibley's involvement in a very sketchy waste incinerator project, large contributions to Edwin Edwards and Mary Landrieu, plus campaign contributions to other candidates.
Train Car LLC also goes here:
http://thehayride.com/2010/10/potential-bombshell…
And here:
http://thehayride.com/2010/10/caroline-fayards-fa…
Here's Train Car LLC from the LA SOS website:
"Name Type City Status
TRAIN CAR, L.L.C. Limited Liability Company GREENSBURG Active
Business: TRAIN CAR, L.L.C.
Charter Number: 35819816 K
Registration Date: 11/22/2004
Domicile Address
19 NORTH FIRST ST.
GREENSBURG, LA 70441
Mailing Address
C/O WILLIAM PHILLIPS
P. O. BOX 399
GREENSBURG, LA 70441
Status
Status: Active
Annual Report Status: Not In Good Standing for failure to file Annual Report
File Date: 11/22/2004
Last Report Filed: 10/16/2008
Type: Limited Liability Company
Registered Agent(s)
Agent: WILLIAM T. PHILLIPS
Address 1: 19 NORTH FIRST ST.
City, State, Zip: GREENSBURG, LA 70441
Appointment Date: 2/28/2008
Officer(s) Additional Officers: No
Officer: NIPUN DESAI
Title: Manager
Address 1: 2421 CLEARVIEW
City, State, Zip: METAIRIE, LA 70001
Amendments on File
No Amendments on file "
Page 10 of this online court pleading shows William T. Phillips as with the Sibley Law Firm, representing "South African Claimants."
http://www.mied.uscourts.gov/information/Dow/pdf/…
Here is Phillips shows as being with the Sibley Law firm for campaign contributions in a NY Senate race and also Sen. Mary Landrieu's campaign:
http://www.city-data.com/elec2/elec-TANGIPAHOA-LA…
Out of the above Nipun companies:
Out of the above Nipun Desai companies, besides Train Car:
DESAI, NIPUN Member of “LONGVUE PROPERTIES, L.L.C.” GREENSBURG
Domicile in Greensburg, Sibley is an officer and agent
In several of the LA SOS listings Nipun Desai has “ONE NEW NORTH ST” in Greensburg as the domicile, mailing or agent address.
That is the same address as:
“Sibley Caskey Callender & Burley Attorneys”
http://www.trueyellow.com/abogado/Greensburg/Loui…
And W. Hugh Sibley:
http://www.powerprofiles.com/profile/000051487968…
For some reason Train Car LLC shows up in bankruptcy pleadings at this address:
"Train Car, LLC 42235 Happywood Road Hammond, LA"
That's probably "42235 Happywoods Rd."
Gauthier & Sibley showed up together in the Shell refinery case:
http://ladb.org/nxt/gateway.dll/HC/2005-05-26_05-…
And also in the tobacco litigation (obviously with a lot of other folks):
http://tobaccodocuments.org/pm/2074840849-0857.ht…
Sibley and Fayard were also involved in the mega Gert Town chemical plant payout case (and see recent reports about how some of the settlement proceeds have been misplaced in New Orleans recently, still). Gauthier actually appeared as an expert witness testifying in defense of the fee request. 10.19.96 TP
This is a cool article from the 5.20.01 TP:
"Behind-the-scenes move shaped casino deal – Book recounts birth of gambling in N.O.
The following book excerpt is from `Bad Bet on the Bayou: The Rise of Gambling in Louisiana and the Fall of Governor Edwin Edwards,' by former Times-Picayune reporter Tyler Bridges. Additional excerpts will be published on the next two Sundays.
…………
Wined, dined and wooed by resort developer Chris Hemmeter, New Orleans Mayor Sidney Barthelemy in November 1992 had awarded Hemmeter the lease to the Rivergate, the now outmoded convention center at the foot of Canal Street stipulated by law as the site for what was to be "the world's largest casino." Hemmeter had allied himself with Caesars World to operate the Grand Palais, as he was calling the project, and remained supremely confident that the billion-dollar gambling palace soon would be his.
Belatedly, another contender had entered the fray: Harrah's Casino Co., in a hastily contrived alliance with a consortium of 10 local investors calling themselves Jazzville.
Picking between the rival casino operators was the job of a nine-member gambling board.
"I want this to be the most pristine board ever appointed in the state of Louisiana," Gov. Edwin Edwards announced as he set about naming its members, a statement that in time would haunt him.
Amid repeated delays and mounting acrimony, the board finally set Aug. 11, 1993, as the date it would award the coveted operator's license.
With so much at stake, partners on both sides reckoned nervously with the prospect of coming away with nothing at all. But, confident of victory, Hemmeter adamantly refused various entreaties to hedge his bet by cutting in the rival Harrah's/Jazzville investor group.
"Not even 1 percent," Hemmeter said. "Not a nickel."
"Chris," he was asked by Billy Broadhurst, a close ally of Edwards' who secretly had been given a piece of the Hemmeter deal, "would you rather have 100 percent of nothing or 75 percent of the biggest casino in the world?"
"Nothing," Hemmeter said. "I am not doing a deal with them."
Hemmeter — and practically everyone else — believed that he and Caesars would win. Meeting in Hemmeter's suite the night before the gambling board vote, his team predicted it would triumph by a 6-3 margin.
What Hemmeter didn't know was that a secret meeting elsewhere in the New Orleans area that same night had changed the odds.
In the pressure cooker
The meeting took place at the Metairie apartment of Sallie Page, an Alexandria filing clerk who had seen her salary more than quadruple by getting appointed to the gambling board. Edwards had named her to the board at the request of Cleo Fields, who had been in the state Senate when he asked the favor but had since been elected to Congress. It was Fields who showed up at Page's apartment that night. Fields had attended Southern University in Baton Rouge with Page's children, and Page's husband, a former Alexandria city councilman, had been an early supporter of Fields' political career.
Page was not alone in being beholden to a political mentor.
In a move aimed at disarming critics, Edwards' first selection to the board was Billy Nungesser, 63, the chairman of the Louisiana Republican Party. Nungesser, a chain-smoking, self-made man who owned an offshore catering business, was a longtime Edwards foe.
But Page's other board colleagues — a couple of real estate agents, a bureaucrat with the state Department of Health and Hospitals, another with a Baton Rouge worker training board, a retired Natchitoches trial lawyer, the Crowley pediatrician who had looked after Edwards' kids when they were young — seemed far less likely to stand up to political pressure.
Leroy Melton, for one, a Department of Health and Hospitals lawyer, didn't seem to do anything without checking with New Orleans state Rep. Sherman Copelin, a political deal-maker who had recommended Melton to Edwards. Jack Frank, the Crowley pediatrician, was very close to Broadhurst. Joan Heisser, a real estate agent and onetime beauty salon owner, was a protegee of Barthelemy, who had dated her in high school.
At Edwards' prompting, the board chose as its chairman a retired FBI agent named Max Chastain. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy who served as a Navy pilot before joining the FBI, he appeared to be a man of impeccable integrity. But Chastain, 52, whose appointment had been recommended by Jefferson Parish Sheriff Harry Lee, a longtime Edwards ally, would quickly prove himself a mere feeder fish in Louisiana's shark-infested political waters.
The Fields factor
Accompanying Fields to Page's apartment was Hugh Sibley , a lawyer close to Fields and to Calvin Fayard, a trial lawyer who was one of the Jazzville 10. This was no social call. Fields was there at the behest of the Jazzville partners to sway Page their way. Jazzville feared that Melton and Heisser, who, like Page, were African-American board members, had persuaded her to join them out of racial solidarity in backing their favorite, Hemmeter/Caesars.
Page, 51, had made little mark on the casino-selection process and clearly was out of her league. She rarely spoke at board meetings, perhaps out of diffidence stemming from her limited background as a filing clerk. But in private conversations with other board members, she would note with pride that her seven children had gone to college and that several had embarked on professional careers.
At the apartment, Fields played the race card. He reminded Page that Hemmeter and Caesars did not have any African-Americans among their top officials. Jazzville, he pointed out, had two: Burnell Moliere, the owner of a janitorial company based in Norco, and Duplain "Pete" Rhodes III, whose family has owned a funeral home in New Orleans for years. Fields hammered away at Jazzville's racial appeal. Shortly before he left, he asked Page to kneel with him and join in a prayer for guidance in the following day's decision.
Meanwhile, a group of Harrah's Jazz officials were anxiously eating dinner at Galatoire's. While drinking copious amounts of alcohol, they debated endlessly their chances of winning the following day. On one thing they all agreed: They could not win without Page. They had learned of the meeting at Page's apartment and kept up with the evening's developments through constant conversations on their cell phones. Afterward, the group retired to the bar at the Westin Hotel, where the Harrah's officials were staying. About midnight, George Solomon, another of the Jazzville partners, called Calvin Fayard.
"What's the status?" Solomon asked.
"Cleo's turned her back around," Fayard said.
Place your bets
The following morning, the 100 seats in the gambling board meeting room were nowhere near enough for the throng that trooped up to the 27th floor of Canal Place, with its breathtaking views of the river, downtown New Orleans and the targeted Rivergate site directly across the street. People were jammed into every nook and cranny of the room and spilled over into the hallway.
"There's going to be a surprise," one member whispered to a reporter as the board members filed in to take their places at a crescent-shaped dais.
About 11:30 a.m., Chastain announced that the board was ready to vote.
Members had drawn lots to decide the order in which they would speak. As it happened, Page was first. Fields' time with her had been well-spent. She uttered a single word: "Harrah's."
A visible shudder ran through the Hemmeter team, and their scowls would only darken as three others followed Page into the Harrah's camp.
The board, once clearly biased toward Hemmeter, was evenly split between the two proposals, 4-4. It would fall to Chastain, as chairman, to cast the deciding vote.
In the days leading to the vote, Chastain had been unable to make up his mind. One moment he would be for Hemmeter/Caesars, the next he would be for Harrah's Jazz. He hadn't gotten much sleep the night before as he lay in bed mulling his decision. More than anything else, he hoped he wouldn't have to cast the tie-breaking vote.
So when it came down to four votes for each side, Chastain seemed to feel the pressure immediately. He sat bug-eyed, saying nothing. Billy Nungesser, who was sitting next to Chastain, kicked him under the table. Finally, Chastain started to speak. His voice quavering with nervousness, he began by thanking his colleagues for thoroughly reviewing the bids. "By this vote, you can see how closely this board considers that the proposers were," he said.
Chastain stopped, leaned forward, and announced, "I vote for Harrah's."
'What happened?'
Shrieks broke out, and pandemonium swept the room. The Jazzville crowd traded bear hugs and high fives as Hemmeter and his grim-faced allies quietly left.
"I'm broke, I'm bankrupt, I'm busted, I'm ruined," a disconsolate Hemmeter would tell one of his partners in a post-mortem meeting in his hotel suite shortly after the bombshell vote.
In Baton Rouge, Edwards said he was shocked by a decision that went against Caesars, a casino operator he had long professed to admire.
Barthelemy learned the results in a call from close associate Ron Nabonne and was thunderstruck. He had seen Hemmeter's casino as the crowning achievement of his administration and, in a foolish move, was balancing the coming year's budget on an upfront payment from Hemmeter that suddenly was in doubt.
"What happened? What happened?" he asked, his jaw trembling as it did when he was extremely upset.
As they mulled over the vote, Barthelemy and Nabonne decided that for all the governor's respect for Caesars, they could see his hand in Harrah's triumph.
He wanted to make sure his friends in Jazzville weren't cut out, Nabonne said. "The governor didn't want to play second fiddle to you."
Memo: `Bad Bet on the Bayou: The Rise of Gambling in Louisiana and the Fall of Governor Edwin Edwards,' by former Times-Picayune reporter Tyler Bridges, part 1"
It's so odd how the TP has already written this story, but they just won't write the story. Yaknow?
God Bless Louisiana, New Orleans and all its environs, and United States of America.
Oh Charlie and Vaughn………
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8JRPrwxhAg
sop
Guiness:
The Train Car, LLC bankruptcy involved an enormous mansion at that address. Hugh Sibley was building the mansion for himself with money he was running through the bank accounts of Train Car while owing the IRS several millions in taxes. There's a lot to share on this, but I think you hit most of the links where I've previously explained much of it.
Sop1
Your work on the Trout Point Lodge is right up there with American Zombie's work on the Crime Cameras. Both of you guys hit it out the park as evidenced today by this language from the USAO:
"Broussard also received income from a holding company with investment property in Canada that was partially funded by individuals and firms doing business with the parish while Broussard was president, according to the document."
Thank you Pres. Bringing this story home in the face of repeated harassement from the owners of Trout Point Lodge and a dysfunctional Canadian court system is making today extra sweet for me.
sop
Nothing is better than good ole scorched Canadian Bacon with a little Maple Syrup poured on it, ehhhhh?
Ummmm Good. 🙂 But nothing beats them reaching out to Magnum for help. LMAO!!!!!
http://slabbed.wordpress.com/2012/01/17/in-this-s…
sop
Sop your outstanding journalistic work on Trout Point revealed to the Feds why the owners and their strawmen wanted the T/P to back off the story and why they wanted to shut you up. You deserve two Peabodys and a hat tip from the Feds plus the TV and printed media who all bailed out in fear of the story.
I would be afraid to go to the slipperyslabbed site on wordpress as I wouldn't want to find out what the slippery part/substance might be.
If Magnum has any brains he would stay clear of the situation.
Thank you Lockem. For the past 5 days I've been collecting my thoughts. When that journalist friend dropped Don Bolles' name on me with a warning to be careful it reminded me why I needed to resist the urge to give the business to the girls like I would any piece of trash on the finance boards. That same friend suggested I check out the IRE and just the website alone has been a great resource.
I say all that because there is another story here, one me and the lifers here have been living since May, 2010. Taking a step back has helped me get that story written in my mind, which for me is half the battle. Folks Leary and Perret are just an extension of what Theriot tried with the Times Picayune.
Now that Karen Parker has begun blowing the lid off the Trout Point development I'll add a very interesting tidbit, one Rich Rainey never picked up on in his original reporting. Remember back in the late 90s several state legislators were indicted along with certain people in the video poker business? One of the allegations centered on then State Senator Larry Bankston making people in need of legislative help rent his Florida Condo at an inflated price. A little birdie is telling me that is one of the sweet nothings Karen Parker is whispering in Public Integrity's ear right now.
Now this is not to suggest Leary and Perret handled the money for that but the Bill of Information reads that this all went down in Nova Scotia. We all know who handled the money for Aaron's property in Nova Scotia for they are the subject of this post. If this is true it gives an entirely new flavor to why they went to court in Canada to get information on Slabbed commenters.
Consider this a teaser to part two of this post, which will be published soon.
sop
Funny you should bring up Florida condos Sop … ORANGE BEACH … Coulon, Broussard, Landry, Doucet, and so many more …
Hopefully the FBI and US Attys are following their foot prints on the beach !!!
If people think that Aaron Broussard is dealing with a full deck of cards then they should see this Travers Mackel interview with him today. Broussards best defense is the fact that the man has mental challenges and has had them for quite some time. http://www.wdsu.com/video/30236026/detail.html
In the Travers Mackel piece it surmises that with Parker-Broussard changing her plea and cooperating w/ the Feds , other officials in J.P. could possibly be charged in this payroll fraud investigation. Hopefully sooner than later….
Bunhare paying people as Paralegals that did not report to work has been a time honored practice dating back to the Tim Coulon days as Parish Prez. Of course we all know Tom Wilkinson was Coulon's guy for Parish attorney.
Slabbed of course was on this topic "first with the most" way back in February 2010 courtesy of Telemachus when the name Paul Connick Sr entered the lexicon of the Slabbed.
To their credit Channel 6, working quietly in the background on this matter in July of last year checked in with this:
Now do you guys remember the Dutchie Connick memo? We leaked it to the world back on January 25, 2011 and I recently made that post sticky and did so for a reason. Why is Dutchie Connick important? Again it was Slabbed commenter Telemachus who helped hone us in like a laser beam. Dutchie knows where lots of bodies are buried in both landfills and Slabbed has learned DoJ Public Integrity has put the ball squeeze on Dutchie. Remember folks I hung the timestamp that Tim Whitmer was cooperating and in light of the Dutchie Connick Memo I think I understand why the FBI is after him to talk.
This brings us back to Paul Connick Sr and his days as a paralegal. If the feds can show a pattern of illegal activity involving the same group of people Racketeering aka RICO becomes a real prosecutorial option. The statute of limitation rules in RICO are very unique and put each and every one of those people listed in that Channel 6 report squarely in the cross hairs including the 80 something year old Paul Connick Sr.
Gambit also did a piece noting the names of politially connected people including our own AMV, that worked in the Parish Attorney's office back in early December.
http://www.bestofneworleans.com/blogofneworleans/…
AMV is a lawyer folks so she was certainly qualified for her job, unlike some of the others. Her name also surfaced in reporting by Rich Rainey at the Picayune. She is also the person who blew the whistle on the wrongdoing in the Parish attorney's office so where that all leads is a matter of interest here at Slabbed.
I've said it before and I'll say it again, the names that will be coming up will surprise, indeed even shock those that have not been keeping up with us here on Slabbed.
sop
(edited at 10:13AM)
Anyone think that Calvin Fayard should have endorsed Obama instead of Clinton now? And Johnny boy you should have endorsed Obama as well instead of McCain.
You better hush Pres. 😉
Not quite ready to roll out the latest on the Calhoun front but it does not appear to me that Fayard and Honeycutt will be able to see that MDL PSC thang thru to the end.
sop