A SO-CALLED PROSPERITY GOSPEL PASTOR HAS BEEN INDICTED FOR NOT
ONLY SKIMMING THE PEOPLE WHO FOLLOW HIM, BUT ALSO ALLEGED
MASSIVE TAX FRAUD AND OTHER SCAMS RELATED TO HIM AND
HIS PREACHING.
THIS IS TODD COONTZ AND APPARENTLY,
THAT PICTURE IS WORTH 1000 WORDS AND THEN SOME.
HE LOOKS LIKE HE JUST GOT CAUGHT WITH HIS HAND IN THE COOKIE JAR.
IT'S A PERFECT PICTURE FOR THE STORY.
SO MANY DIFFERENT THINGS IN THIS PICTURE.
HE HAS BEEN INDICTED AND ACCUSED OF PARTICIPATING IN
A CHECK-CASHING SCHEME INVOLVING TRAVEL REIMBURSEMENTS FOR
SPEAKING APPEARANCES AND FOR BOOK CELLS AND THEN FILING
FRAUDULENT TAX RETURNS IN ORDER TO HIDE THE MONEY.
HERE'S WHAT HE DOES, AND FIRST OF ALL, IF YOU ARE A BAD
GUY, THIS IS A PRETTY CLEVER WAY OF DODGING TAXES AND
GETTING A LITTLE EXTRA MONEY.
HE WOULD PRETEND LIKE HE WAS GOING ON SPEAKING TOURS
RELATED TO HIS WORK AND THINGS LIKE THAT, WORK-RELATED
TRAVEL ESSENTIALLY, AND THEN HE WOULD BILL THE CHURCH THAT
HE WAS WORKING AT TO REIMBURSE HIM AND WHEN THEY WOULD
REIMBURSE HIM FOR TOURS THAT HE DIDN'T EVEN TAKE, TRAVEL
THAT HE DIDN'T EVEN DIFFER WHERE, WHEN THEY WOULD
REIMBURSE HIM, THAT IS NOT TAXED.
HE WOULD JUST CATCH THAT MONEY WHICH HE DIDN'T EARN, HE
WOULDN'T GET TAXED ON IT, AND THERE GOES THE WHOLE TAX
FRAUD SCAM.
GIVE YOU A SENSE OF SCALE, HE DID THIS WITH 102
CHECKS BETWEEN THE YEARS 2010 AND 2013.
TO THE TUNE OF $252,000 AND THEN THE NEXT YEAR, IN 2014,
HE DID FOR 32 CHECKS FOR $105,000.
IT'S A LOT OF MONEY WE'RE TALKING ABOUT AND I WOULD
LIKE TO DISAGREE WITH AND I GET ON ONE POINT.
YOU SAID IT'S A PRETTY CLEVER SCHEME.
APPARENTLY NOT BECAUSE HE GOT CAUGHT IT'S PROBABLY GOING
TO JAIL.
.COM BECAUSE HE GOT GREEDY AND OFTEN TIMES, PEOPLE GET TOO
GREEDY AND THAT IS WHEN THEY GET CAUGHT.
I COULD TOTALLY, IF YOU DIDN'T DO IT ON SUCH A LARGE SCALE, I
THINK HE WOULD GET AWAY WITH IT BUT THINK ABOUT THE AMOUNT OF
MONEY THAT HE STOLE FROM THE CHURCH ON TOP OF STEALING MONEY
FROM PEOPLE WHO THINK IF I GIVE THIS DUE TO COUPLE OF HUNDRED
DOLLARS I WILL SOMEHOW BECOME WEALTHY.
JESUS WILL SOMEHOW SPINKS PRINGLE CASH ON ME THAT HE
WILL MAKE IT RAIN.
THAT IS NOT HOW IT WORKS, PLEASE DON'T BE SCANNED I KNOW
JOBS LIKE THIS GUY.
'S WHOLE EXISTENCE IS A SCAM BUT IT WASN'T ENOUGH.
HE HAD TO GO OVER THE TOP AND DO THINGS THAT ARE ILLEGAL.
TELL THEM ABOUT THE ESSENCE OF THE SCAM OF PROSPERITY GOSPEL.
LET'S GO TO GRAPHIC NIGHT.
HE BUILT THE CHURCHES WHERE HE MADE APPEARANCES FOR A FULL
FAIR FIRST-CLASS TICKET WHILE PURCHASING TICKETS FOR
SUBSTANTIALLY LESS.
THAT WAS ANOTHER THING THAT HE DID NOT QUITE SO GIVEN THAT
ONE BECAUSE THE DUDE HAD TO FLY AND COACH AND HE LOOKS LIKE
A BIG GUY.
HE PROBABLY SUFFERED ON THAT WITH THE
HE DIDN'T HAVE TO PLAN COACH THOUGH.
HE FLEW IN COACH JUST TO GET MAKE A LITTLE EXTRA MONEY.
BY THE WAY, I'M ABOUT TO TELL YOU JUST HOW MUCH WEALTH HE
HAS IN THE 2ND.
HE PROMISED UNTOLD WEALTH FOR HIS FOLLOWERS FOR THE PRICE OF A
$273 NOTE DONATION, CALLING IT A RECOVERY SEED.
THAT'S MY FAVORITE PART OF THE STORY.
THAT IS THE PART THAT IS NOT ILLEGAL.
THAT IS THE PROSPERITY GOSPEL.
A LOT OF PREACHERS WHITE AND BLACK ARE DOING YELLED
ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND DEMANDING TONS OF MONEY FROM PEOPLE.
THEY SAY YOU GIVE ME $273, I GIVE YOU A MIRACLE, KIND OF.
IT IS COMING LATER AND THEY SPECIFICALLY SAY, YOU
GIVE US MONEY NOW, YOU WILL GET MORE MONEY LATER.
IT IS NOT LIKE YOU WILL GET A PRAYER AND YOUR ANGLE WILL GET
FIXED, OR A SPOT IN HEAVEN, NO, YOU WILL GET RICHER LATER.
BUT SINCE IT'S FROM JESUS, IT IS GOING TO BE FINE.
PEOPLE ARE LIKE SURE, TAKE MY MONEY.
AND THEN AFTER HE HAS ALL OF THIS MONEY, AGAIN SHE IS GOING
TO TELL YOU IN A SEC, HE IS LIKE PRECIOUS, NOT ENOUGH.
IF YOU ARE A PROFESSIONAL SCAM ARTIST LIKE THIS, YOU THINK
WHY NOT SKIM THE GOVERNMENT TO?
A GEL CELL MIGHT BE WHY NOT.
HERE'S A LITTLE TASTE OF HOW WEALTHY THIS GUY IS,
BECAUSE OF ALL OF THESE SCAMS.
HIS CHURCH EVEN PAID FOR HIS CONDO WHICH IS WORTH $1.5
MILLION.
ALSO KEEP IN MIND THAT HE HAD NOT ONE OR TWO BUT THREE
BMWS, TWO FOR ARIS, MASERATI AND A LAND ROVER.
WHY DO YOU NEED THAT MANY CARS?
I DON'T UNDERSTAND THAT BY THE WAY, I'M NOT THE BUSINESS
OF TELLING PEOPLE WHAT THEY CAN OR CAN'T HAVE.
IF YOU CAN AFFORD AND YOU WANT THAT MANY CARS, SO BE IT.
GOOD LUCK, WHATEVER.
BUT IF YOU ARE LITERALLY TAKING ADVANTAGE OF PEOPLE, EXPLOITING
THEM IN THEIR TIME OF NEED AND SKIMMING THE GOVERNMENT BY
EVADING TAXES AND DOING ALL OF THIS SHADY STUFF, LIKE REALLY?
YOU DID ALL OF THAT JUST THE YOU CAN AFFORD, WHAT, 50 CARS?
HOW MANY DO YOU NEED?
I DON'T UNDERSTAND.
BY THE WAY, ONE B&W IS ENOUGH.
ONE MASERATI IS ENOUGH.
ONE LAND ROVER IS ENOUGH.
BUT THIS DUDE, IT IS NOT ENOUGH.
HE IS SO GREEDY THAT IT IS NEVER ENOUGH.
IT IS LIKE THE DONOR CLASS.
I'VE GOT $40
BILLION, BUT I WANT ANOTHER BILLION DOLLAR TAX BREAK.
I'M GOING TO MAKE SURE YOU GET KICKED OFF OF HEALTHCARE SO
I CAN GET IT.
I HATE TO SAY IT, OR MAYBE I DON'T.
NO I AM HESITATING SO I DO HATE TO SAY IT.
SOME RELIGIOUS FOLKS, DEFINITELY NOT ALL, COME ON, MAN.
REALLY?
A RECOVERY SEED?
DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS BY THE WAY?
YOU ARE ALREADY IN BAD SHAPE AND THEN YOU ARE GOING TO PAY
$273 WHEN YOU ARE IN BAD SHAPE SO YOU CAN RECOVER?
YOU ARE GOING TO GIVE IT - IF YOUR PASTOR SHOWS UP IN A
FERRARI, HE MIGHT NOT BE THE RIGHT PASTOR.
JESUS TOLD YOU TO GIVE AWAY ALL OF YOUR WORLDLY POSSESSIONS.
JUST CRACK THE BOOK OPEN.
I'M NOT A BELIEVER, I DON'T BELIEVE IN ANY OF THEM BUT
IF YOU DO, TRY READING A PAGE OR 2.
1ST OF ALL, YOU MIGHT BE SHOCKED AT WHAT IS IN THERE.
2ND OF ALL, YOU WILL FIND OUT THERE ARE GOOD AND BAD THINGS
ABOUT
CHRISTIANITY BUT THE GOOD THING IS THAT JESUS CARED SO MUCH
ABOUT THE POOR AND THE NEEDY AND HE DIDN'T DRIVE A MASERATI.
HOW GULLIBLE ARE YOU?
STOP GIVING THIS MONEY TO THESE SCAM ARTISTS.