Surf’s Up Mod Releases Andy Bowdoin Letter To Troops; ASD Head Urges Letter-Writing Campaign To Glenn Beck
Andy Bowdoin.
First, members of the Pro-AdSurfDaily Surf’s Up forum tried to whip up support for ASD President Andy Bowdoin by sending Kool Aid packets to Bill O’Reilly of Fox News. Now Bowdoin himself, through a Surf’s Up Mod, is urging members to write letters to Glenn Beck, another Fox personality.
And, taking a page from his own playbook, Bowdoin also has asked members to write to President Obama, the Justice Department and elected officials “to stop this misuse of power.”
The move comes on the heels of a stunning court motion Bowdoin filed March 11 in which he acknowledged ASD was operating illegally when the government seized tens of millions of dollars from Bowdoin last summer. Bowdoin claimed in the filing that he did not know ASD was operating illegally at the time of the seizure and that the government denied him fair notice and due process.
In the filing, Bowdoin claims to be a “defendant” in a “quasi-criminal” prosecution. But Bowdoin hasn’t been named a defendant by the government, which sued the money and property for forfeiture, saying it was the proceeds of a criminal enterprise.
Prosecutors said ASD was engaging in wire fraud, money-laundering and the sale of unregistered securities — all while operating a $100 million Ponzi scheme.
Bowdoin had not communicated with the membership at large in months. He did not tell members about a second forfeiture complaint that had been filed in December against assets tied to the firm. Nor did Bowdoin tell members that, in January, he had submitted to the forfeiture of the money and property seized last summer.
In court filings, Bowdoin now says he has changed his mind about submitting to the forfeiture, even though he acknowledged that ASD was operating illegally — exactly what the government contended.
In his letter to the members, however, Bowdoin did not mention the motion in which he acknowledged ASD was operating illegally.
His last formal contact with the members was in late fall, a few months after the initial seizure, when Bowdoin tried to sell them VOIP phone service, positioning the $19.95-a-month plan as a gift to the membership. Days before, he told members that Ponzi allegations had been dropped against ASD in Florida, even though Ponzi allegations hadn’t been brought in Florida.
During the same time period in the fall, ASD’s Breaking News site announced a deal with Praebius Communications, saying ASD expected to pump $200 million into its coffers as a result of the deal. Praebius is a penny-stock company that does not publish financials.
In early December, an autosurf known as AdViewGlobal (AVG) began to position itself for launch. AVG has close ties to ASD, including George Harris, Bowdoin’s stepson and an AVG trustee; Gary Talbert, a former ASD executive now an executive and trustee for AVG; Chuck Osmin, a former ASD employee now working for AVG; and Nate Boyd, a former ASD compliance officer now listed as the “Protector” of AVG.
By December 19, federal prosecutors filed a second forfeiture complaint, saying Bowdoin’s wife, Edna Faye Bowdoin and her son, George Harris, had used proceeds from ASD to retire the $157,216 mortgage on the home Harris shared with his wife, Judy Harris.
Bowdoin now says that he recently was introduced to a “group” that is giving him legal advice. Bowdoin started filing his own court pleadings in late February, at the same time AVG was introducing members to Pro Advocate Group, which says it can help people practice medicine and law without a license.
Pro Advocate Group is associated with Karl Dahlstrom. In 1997, Dahlstrom was sentenced to 78 months in federal prison for orchestrating a securities scheme.
In his letter to ASD members, Bowdoin did not disclose the name of the “group” from which he was receiving advice. Nor did Bowdoin reference or confirm reports that bank accounts belonging to ASD and AVG members recently had been seized.
He did say he fired his paid attorneys.
Here is Bowdoin’s letter. We added the italics.
Hi Folks,
It’s good to be talking to you once again. My attorneys kept me quiet for months, but after $800,000.00 and no results I fired them all.
About a month ago, several members introduced me to a group that studied what my attorneys did. The group said that my attorneys had taken the wrong approach.
The group was very confident that they could help because the government had broken so many laws and had violated our rights as citizens of the United States.
I have rescinded my decision to release our ownership of all the assets. I filed various motions a few weeks ago, and several more last week, to dismiss our case and to return the assets because of the violations committed by our government.
We are ready to pursue this all the way to the US Supreme Court.
A great injustice has been done to 100,000 people, and we need to stand up and fight for our rights. Some agencies of the government have become so powerful that they believe they are above the Constitution. We, as members of ASD, need to help stop this misuse of power. I ask each one of you to write to the Justice Department, to your senators and representatives, to the President, and even to Glen Beck of Fox News. Tell them all what the Justice Department has done to your business.
We will be filing papers in the next couple of weeks that should really get their attention. Watch for the filings. I will be speaking out on a conference call as soon as the filings are completed. We will notify you of the call. I look forward to talking to you then.
I appreciate your support in helping us get back what rightfully belongs to the members of ASD.
Thanks,
Andy Bowdoin
Patrick, would care to take a guess on just how many more disappointments this group (members forum) can take before they finally say, enough is enough? After the announcement by Andy/asd of each of the schemes mentioned above,,there has been high celebration, similar to what is taking place over there right now..NON of which has worked for them..what kind of mind set embraces and follows a man like Andy Bowdoin, who, without question is a psychopathic lier…a FACT proven over and over and over again
One Simple Fact would solve ALL of this. And that fact is the amount of rebates that were due to members at the time of the seizure/closure (8/1/08).
It is generally acknowledged that apx. $100MM in assets were seized and/or available, etc.
The total of pending payouts has been recorded, I believe, to be around $26MM. I could be wrong about the number but it is significantly less than the $100M.
However, that is Pending Payouts, NOT the total amount of rebates due to members, only the amount that had been requested. The ASDelusionsals continue to point to “Pending payouts” as the liability of the company and therefore see the $75MM net left as equity, therefore proving the viability.
Beep, wrong answer.
No one, anywhere, has yet to provide the total “Rebates Owed” number. My guess it’s significantly over $200MM. If that number is ever released by the government forensic accountants, it will go a long way towards bringing some semblance of sanity to these wild discussions, accusations, head fake mea culpas and discussions of constitutional challenges.
Math is math is math is math.
Even in Delusional World.
Clint
Just for the record Kathy, would you mind saying how long you were a ASD member, how much you invested and how big your downline was?
I did a little math and estimate the number to be at least $395 million and possibly higher than half a billion, based largely on published numbers from the rally participants and otherwise mentioned in the government’s complaint. The total liability as of 1st August will be somewhere in that range.
andy talks and AVG just anoticed a 200% match over $2500.00 for old members and 500.00 for new!!! this is getting un-real
Now that Andy has revealed he was not allowed to talk because his attorney’s told him not to, and that he spent over $800,000 on attorney fee’s, it brings up some interesting questions I am sure he and the Surf’s Up crowd won’t want asked.
First, Andy would not shut up after he was “told” by his attorney’s not to talk. Remember all those conference calls where he was the star attraction? Then people were saying he could not keep the servers going because all the funds were frozen. So where did he get the $800,000 for his attorney’s fees. Seems if he had access to those type of funds, he also had access to keep the servers running, and could have run the ads as the judge said he could.
Now there are a lot of other contradictions in Andy’s “great letter” the Surf’s Up crowd is celebrating, but you can be assured no-one will be allowed to post these troubling contradictions or ask the questions.
And the good news is more motions to follow from Andy. Interesting how non-lawyers know more about the law than the professional’s isn’t it. Wonder if he is now a member of the sham Indian tribe? Wonder if he also gets discounts at Arby’s?
I think I know what Andy’s next court filing will be. He’ll claim that he is his own country.
http://www.examiner.com/a-1898726~DUI_defendant_claims_that_he_s_his_own_country.html
“DUI defendant claims that he’s his own country”
This defence sounds like it comes straight from the Arby Indians.
Hi Kathy,
I think they’re down to several dozen, Kathy, with a few of those taking cues from the committed minority.
The high celebration is eerie, to be sure. But I suspect many of the posts are not so much anointing Andy as they are trying to shoo off personal trouble.
Some of the folks have a profound need to believe because the personal consequences for not believing — lost money and perhaps jail time — are entirely too painful to contemplate.
I suspect Andy has been under some pressure to speak from people who potentially face the most severe consequences. Some folks are WAY out on the limb for him, and his silence was making them look bad.
Patrick
Hi Clint,
They see the deception as the perfect business. The real criminality is in “rebates aren’t guaranteed,” which permits ASD to ignore the debit side of the ledger. Liabilities can be wiped away by fiat — as they have been so many times by so many surf operators.
Imagine what would happen if a judge ever let the business model fly. Theft factories would spring up in an instant.
Collect an amount that suits your fancy, invoke “rebates aren’t guaranteed” and cash out. Boom! Instant profit from theft — and approved by the courts.
Patrick
Hi Tony,
Maybe it’s the up-and-coming thing, Tony:
Judge: How do you plead?
Defendant: “My own country.”
Judge: We normally limit the plea at this stage of the proceedings to ‘guilty’ or ‘not guilty.'”
Defendant: “Accept my plea or owe me $30 million.”
Judge: Bailiff, Mr. Jones pleads ‘my own country.'” Please make sure the marshals arrange for the diplomatic suite.”
If this all wasn’t so serious it would be funny. actually I gave up reruns of Everyone Loves Raymond to read all the stuff on the ASD saga… always interesting to see where it will go next…
Many at the Surf’s Up site profess to be deeply religious, based on their letters of support for Andy. There is a strong incongruency that belies their faith — they are apparently more than willing to steal other people’s money through ASD for their own benefit, which undoubtably is against their teachings (I think). Further, they profess that their god (and God) will lead them to victory in the courts. Some day, their faith will be shaken to its core — they’ll find out that they have been worshipping a false god as he goes to prison, and they will know that their own God will not be very happen with them……now or later….
One of the great tragedies in terms of human suffering to come as an after effect of HYIP ponzi scams is the damage done to those who fall for the God/religious connection so often used by criminals like Bowdoin.
As well as the lost money and potential gaol time, many believed Bowdoins’ claims of doing Gods’ work and have invoked Gods’ name in praying for Bowdoin to be found not guilty and ASD to continue.
These believers are now in an almost unimaginably difficult position.
Admitting Bowdoins’ guilt means challenging their very core belief systems in ways too terrible to consider for many.
Patrick:
Yes, I agree entirely about “hiding behind rebates aren’t guaranteed” and it’s insidious simplicity.
But, most sheeple don’t connect the dots to the unintended (or intended) consequences of pie in the sky schemes.
There is a morbid part of me that would like the Courts to let Andy open back up with a codicil in the TOS that states that any participant is on their own and can’t seek redress if they lose money.
Things would be fantabulous for a few months as the money poured in then the “Black Box” Math (math is math is math is math) would rear it’s ugly head, the tables would be turned and most would lose money, some would lose BIG money.
The ASDelusionals would then be screaming for the Evil Gubment to save them, get them refunds and, of course, asking, “Why did you let this happen?”
It won’t happen (ASD opening back up) but it would be nice to shut up the mathematical dolts.
C
Clint,
PArt of me would like to see that happen as well (and to some extent it is happening in AVGA). I like the part of the TOS that allows Bowdoin to unilaterally, without notice, change the supposedly binding terms in any way he wants. I’d love to see ASD open up, and then have the TOS be changed by Andy to say something like “All personal assets of all ASD members henceforth belong solely to Andy Bowdoin, along with the assets of all of the heirs of the members.” Based on the ASDelusional arguments, this is plausible….
Patrick,
Wow. Just, wow. His attorneys got $800,000 for how many hour’s work? Unless, of course, Andy is lying, which is like saying unless Andy is breathing, and he hasn’t paid them a dime and only OWES them $800,000 (or more). It was a case that was never, ever winnable and was never, ever going to trial unless Andy’s insanity couldn’t be controlled. I’d bet 5,000 ad packs that Goodman told Andy all along that he couldn’t win, but Andy couldn’t hear them. Andy saw dollar signs, and he saw himself being looked up to at last, at the age of 74, after years of nothing but failed attempts at proving to his wives and friends that everything he was saying about himself was true.
Jenny and others have said that the social networking/advertising venue had potential for advertising, but it was quickly hijacked by the get rich quick crowd, and when Andy was CEP and l2DP shuttered, he saw an opportunity an jumped on it. Even after ASD crashed and burned spectacularly, Andy and Faye and George and Judy had their kool-aid drinking cheerleaders backing them all the way (or pretending to, for the sake of AVG). Andy, the poor mutt, can’t tell the difference. The AVG crowd, for the purpose of lining their own pockets are still telling him he is a STAR, a famous hero who people lined up to meet and give their money to in the past, and would do it again, just as soon as he and Glen Beck take down his critics. They know he is nothing but a charlatan but they think he is a trustworthy looking charlatan, with a proven track record. Perhaps George, Gary, and Chuck haven’t been able to draw l00,000 people to AVG – or even l0% of l00,000.
They see Andy as a man who couldn’t LOSE until the government stepped in; a man who doesn’t know the meaning of the word “humiliated;” who can’t conceptualize being too proud to make a fool and felon of himself all over again. If the ASD/AVG insaniacs will praise him and call him a genius, it is food for his soul. To be once again worshiped as he was in the hey-day of the ASD rallies, even if his “leaders” considered him a fall-guy, he’ll commit the same crimes all over again, this time for AVG. Andy has spent his entire 74 lifespan, year upon year upon year going in and out of marriages, in and out of failed and often crooked businesses, DECIDING to be a a crook because he didn’t want to work, but wanted the spoils of hard work. Even businesses that started successfully (albeit fraudulently) never brought him long-lasting success. In the end he’s been a crushing failure at everything he touched. If Faye sticks around she’ll be the first wife who has;
Andy’s scammed himself another round of legal and financial (and perhaps marital) fiascoes. It’s what psychopaths do, so don’t anyone feel sorry for him. But feel very sorry for the people who don’t recognize a psychopath who hides behind the facade of a 74 year old, age-spotted, Bible spouting, Lord-thanking, pablum spreading, “business expert.” In the case of this wife, Faye Bowdoin, he seems to have found a partner in crime. She took money she knew had been sent by investors hoping to make a living wage not by working, but by sending it to her husband, and paid off her son’s house for over $l50,000+, plus bought houses, beach condos, boats, water toys, and fancy cars for HER family members and friends. This time, Andy seems to have met his charlatan match. Perhaps they’ll serve prison terms in neighboring cities. But for heaven’s sake, DOJ and SS, don’t let her get away with no prison time. In fact, publish pictures for the ASD mods/AVG founders to see.
Don’t know what I did, but can you please delete the FIRST posting? I never just write, I always write and watch FBN. That might account for it……..who knows? But nothing I write is worth posting once, if the truth were known — much less twice.
Marci,
Although at one time I really did believe in the potential of a social networking/advertising site. However with the benefit of hindsight I would have to say that it would have to have been run by totally different kind of people (like advertising professionals) with very different motivations and a totally different pay structure. The autosurf structure as it stood was not sufficient to call itself either social nor networking – it was just an ad rotator with nothing else important to go with it.
I would now question whether Andy Bowdoin and the original founders ever used the advertising issue as anything else but a cover for their money making activities – the only thing that changed with the arrival of the “get rich cheerleaders” was the script.
Do you see a difference between somebody whose aim was to get rich quick with ASD and somebody who saw ASD as a means to earn a steady income?
After all, the means to achieve either of those goals was exactly the same. Profit by someone elses loss.
Not necessarily true. the original ASD was started with small purchases, nearly always well under 1000$ which hcould easily be financed with outside income from advertising related sources – ad design services, classifieds, web hosting etc etc – which was a total impossibility with the tens of thousand of matching ad pack purchases that followed – ÃF rebates had been given on true sales figures and if there had been a genuine dedication to expand the companies product/services base in the advertising field AND there had been no intention to use it as a pure investment product. But was what we thought a very long time ago, even before the russians came in! lol
However – it wasnt the case – and what happened did happen – and a ponzi was born and raised.
Hi Marci,
Bowdoin said last summer that ASD had a $750,000 legal war chest. He also spent $24,000 on an expert witness, so the $800,000 figure sounds about right.
I have reviewed the judge’s docket and see no entry that Bowdoin’s paid attorneys have exited the case. That doesn’t mean they haven’t exited; it simply means I haven’t found such a record.
Bowdoin, it seems, would have people believe that $800,000 should have bought him a win. The win, though, always was in Bowdoin’s hands: audited accounting showing ASD wasn’t a Ponzi. He didn’t produce it, as you know.
It’s not remotely surprising that Bowdoin is scapegoating his paid attorneys now. It’s easier to scapegoat than to produce audited books, and his attorneys weren’t about to fabricate books for him.
One thing to look for in the future: Bowdoin filed for emergency relief in August, saying he couldn’t pay the rent and his host was threatening to shut down the server.
A week later, prosecutors announced that Bowdoin had $1 million in Antigua under a different name. It was hard to reconcile that with an emergency, and it posed a challenge to his paid attorneys. I rather doubt they knew about the $1 million in Antigua when they filed for emergency relief.
As always, I appreciate your lucid commentary.
Patrick
On July 15th Don Peterson, told us at a meeting up in the twin cites that Andy retained (money was exchanged) for the law firm of Meshbesher & Spence to handle the slander suits. That was told to us to be $750,000.00 Maybe that is way the figure came from.
Hi Mark,
David Arnett of Tulsa Today reported he got a threatening letter last summer from Ronald Meshberger of Meshberger & Spence.
http://www.tulsatoday.com/newsdesk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1698&Itemid=2
Patrick
one letter for $750,000.00 yup that sounds like Ron Meshbesher!!! lol