BREAKING NEWS: Clerk Records Golden Panda ‘Default’
On Monday, prosecutors filed papers to begin the process of finalizing the default of more than $14 million seized from Bank of America accounts controlled by Golden Panda Ad Builder President Clarence Busby and his daughter, Dawn Stowers.
A court clerk today entered a default notice for a total sum of $14,045,598.07. The notice clears the way for the government to take final control of the money.
Golden Panda had five Bank of America accounts, including one that contained precisely $6 million. The company operated in launch phase for only eight days, although Golden Panda also operated in “prelaunch” phase, recording nearly 20,000 members in weeks.
Here is a list of the Golden Panda accounts and the default amounts:
(1) $2,282,999.72 seized from account #[deleted by this Blog] at Bank of America, in the
name of Clarence Busby Jr. and Dawn Stowers, DBA Golden Panda Ad Builder Deposit Account;
(2) $1,112,978.42 seized from account #[deleted by this Blog] at Bank of America, in the name of Clarence Busby Jr. and Dawn Stowers, DBA Golden Panda Ad Builder Operating Account;
(3) $1,642,039.08 seized from account #[deleted by this Blog] at Bank of America, in the name of Clarence Busby Jr. and Dawn Stowers, DBA Golden Panda Ad Builder Cashout Account;
(4) $6,000,000.00 seized from account #[deleted by this Blog] at Bank of America, in the name of Golden Panda Ad Builder;
(5) $3,007,580.85 seized from account #[deleted by this Blog] at Bank of America, in the name of Golden Panda Ad Builder.
In court filings, Clarence Busby said Golden Panda was born in April 2008, on a Georgia fishing lake, after discussion with AdSurfDaily President Andy Bowdoin.
“As a social courtesy to Bowdoin, I asked a pastor friend of mine, Rev. Charles Green, if he might bring his boat and join me in inviting Bowdoin on a relaxing fishing trip,†Busby told U.S. District Judge Rosemary Collyer. “I imagined that operating ASD involved a lot of stress, and I had heard Bowdoin liked to fish. I also wanted a respite from work. The invitation was extended and Bowdoin agreed to join us.â€
“On April 11, 2008, we fished at a lake in Brunswick, Georgia for a day. On that Day Bowdoin surprised me by recommending that I start a Chinese version of ASD,†Busby said. “Bowdoin suggested that I organize the business without him. He said, ‘I can’t handle the business I already have,’ stating that I should be the one to create, own, and operate this Chinese version of ASD.”
In his court filings, Busby said he didn’t know Bowdoin “had prior run ins with the law†and had been arrested in Alabama for defrauding investors.
Busby did not say if he told his fishing partner about his own run-ins with the law: The Securities and Exchange Commission said Busby defrauded investors in the 1990s.
“[T]he Commission alleged that Busby violated the antifraud provisions of the securities laws by offering and selling investment contracts in connection with three different prime bank schemes,†the SEC said.
“Using misrepresentations and omissions in each of the three schemes, Busby raised money for purported trading programs in ‘prime bank’ notes by fraudulently representing to investors that the investments were risk-free and that the ventures would pay returns ranging from 750% to 10,000%. In total, Busby raised nearly $1 million from more than 70 investors. None of the investors earned the exorbitant returns promised by Busby,†the SEC said.
Busby settled the case with the SEC in May 1998 by agreeing not to break securities laws. Ten years later, he once again found himself a central figure in a securities scheme, right next to Bowdoin.
I marvel every time I hear the story told about Clarence and Andy meeting for the first time during a fishing trip. For them to tell this story, with a straight face, they had to believe that people were really gullible to fall for this story. As far as the membership of ASD was concerned, they were right. I guess they didn’t count on the rest of us not falling for it. They were caught up in their own little world, and they truly believed they could control this little story of theirs.
Think about it. We are to believe that Clarence, somehow heard of Andy, and imagined that a person running this type of business had to be under a lot of stress. Makes me wonder how many other ‘businessmen’ he invited out on a fishing trip as they too are under a lot of stress running their businesses, but I digress. So he contacts Andy in Florida to come to Georgia for a day of fishing.
Next we are to believe that after sometime (timeline not given) fishing, Andy, out of the blue, asks Clarence to run Golden Panda because Andy doesn’t have time to do so as ASD is taking all of his time. Now since they have never met before, this means that Andy is asking a total stranger (sounds like something from a Nigerian 419 Email scam letter) to run Golden Panda. A lot of male bonding took place in s very short period of time don’t you think?
Now since a timeline is not given for this interchange of his and Andy’s, we must assume that Clarence in a matter of mere minutes agreed to do so. So in the course of a short fishing trip, two strangers meet, bond, and this deal is reached. So much for due diligence, market research analysis, finacial projections; you know all the standard stuff people do before buying a business or agreeing to join in a business relationship with a total stranger.
Now there are other things that defy credulity with this story, but these are the ones that leap off the page, at least to me. One would think they could have created a better story to tell than this, and it was even done under ‘OATH.’ Not s smart move Clarence.
Kind of flies in the face of reality that Dawn was working for Andy, called him ‘Uncle Andy,’ but Andy and Clarence didn’t know each other doesn’t it. Also that Dawn was in Georgia, and ASD and Andy were in Florida. Makes me wonder just what Dawn was employed to do at ASD, how about you?
As I said, this story has to be one of the most incredible stories of the ASD/Golden Panda saga because so many of the ASD faithful bought it hook, line and sinker. But after all this is a fish story isn’t it.
I dont think the story that “they had just met” was circulated until AFTER the seizure.
The previous story was that they dreamt up Golden Panda whilst fishing – but the implication was that they were old friends. The recent “introduction” came as a great surprise to many when it was read about, as it was inconsistant with everything else we had understood previously.
Dawn Stowers was the PR lady at ASD. When Clarence Busby announced that he had been introduced to ASD by a friend, late on in the life of the company, we took it to mean that he was trying to disassociate himself from Andy Bowdoin and ASD to the Court. I am not sure how many people really believed it.
Actually, Busby said in a sworn statement that his wife’s uncle died in November 2007, which called for him to venture to the funeral, which was held “near the area where . . . Bowdoin was located.”
Busby said he called Bowdoin, having learned his name and number from an ASD member who tried to sell him an ad pack.
Here is that part of the story — verbatim from Busby’s statement:
“I was first informed of ASD from Robyn Lynn from Sarasota, Florida, an ASD
member who I met at a new business opportunity seminar. She told me that she was an ASD member and asked me if I would be interested in buying an ASD ad package and becoming an ASD member also.
“I initially said no. Because I regarded her as intelligent and honest, I told her I would consider the proposal further but would have to meet the person who headed ASD to know whether to buy the package. She gave me Bowdoin’s name and phone number.
“As it happens, in November of 2007, I needed to attend a funeral for my wife’s uncle. The funeral would take place near the area where Lynn told me Bowdoin was located. I called Bowdoin and left him a message telling him I would be in the area and would like to meet him. He called me back and confirmed a lunch appointment.
“I then first met him at the Charter House restaurant in Bainbridge, Georgia. He explained his ASD program to me over lunch. I had (and still have) little understanding of computers and the web. I told him I would have to talk over the idea of buying an ASD ad package with my wife before I decided whether to buy the package and thereby become an ASD member. I spoke with my wife and she thought it worth a try, so we bought an ad package.”
Note to readers: Bainbridge is about 20 miles from Quincy.
Long and short of it: Busby purports to have met Bowdoin in November 2007. Busby purports to have had little understanding of computers and the web.
Busby purports to have gone fishing with Bowdoin in April 2008.
Golden Panda formally launched in July, three months after the fishing trip. Prosecutors now have formalized the amount seized from Golden Panda’s five Bank of America accounts at more than $14 million.
Busby also “voluntarily relinquished” $644,266.13 that was on deposit in Golden Panda’s name in Bartow County Bank. The Bartow County sum is referenced in the December forfeiture complaint.
Bartow County bank is a local bank in Georgia that has a branch in Acworth, Busby’s home.
Patrick
Sounds to me like that business deal was done in a smoke filled room at the back of a shady night club.
I’d like to know just where good ol Andy is these days. Was his wife in on the whole shady scam all along, or did she have her own rude awakening one day. What happened to the money in Antigua? Has he moved from the Gilcrest home? Can he actually walk around Quincy with any self respect?
From the word on the street, Busby was drawing anywhere from $50,000 to $100,000 per month from ASD. Makes you wonder just how much he “invested” in ASD doesn’t it to make that kind of return; as well as what “business” was he advertising?
Funny thing that sworn statement – especially when you remember that his daughter worked for ASD. Rumour has it that their fathers were friends – so November 2007 does sound a little fabricated.
on a monday night call Andy said that he just met an old friend that he had not seen for years. the friend was a little down on his luck, and that Andy gave him 3,000 of his ad pacs to help. Can anyone connect the dots here. Wasn’t Andy running between Alabama and Georga 10 years ago, and didn’t Clance and Andy do any business deals before.
I know there is alot of charges that can be bro0ught up. but Clance lying upder oath I think is any easy one to charge him with
Mark:
You are closer to the truth than you may want to get. Busby and Andy go WAY back and had several business dealings in Georgia, Alabama and North Carolina. There is a rumor that I have not been able to really check out to the fullest as I was asked to back off by some people with a lot of pull (if you know what I mean). The rumor concerned the use of ASD as a way for the laundering of Drug proceeds and that it concerned certain people with close ties to Busby.