By Jim on
Fundamentalism & Evangelicalism
First Baptist Church of Hammond

Former members of First Baptist Church of Hammond argue in a federal lawsuit that the church is responsible for an investment fraud run by a deacon hired by the church to provide financial advice. The former parishioners - Joseph and Crystal Elwell, formerly of Schererville, and Deborah and Robert Baldwin, formerly of Crown Point - say in the lawsuit, filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court in Hammond, that former Pastor Jack Schaap and Thomas Kimmel tricked them into investing more than $400,000 into what turned out to be a Ponzi scheme.

Lawsuit: Hammond church responsible for investment fraud

Boyd et al v. First Baptist Church of Hammond Class Action Complaint

Discussion

Mon, 06/05/17

Whether the David Gibbs that advised the church on the problem back in 2007 was the older or the younger. Another article suggests it is the elder, as the head of the CLA in 2008.

Either way, I dare say that this serves them right, as either Gibbs at the time gave the impression to me of being firmly in the pay of hardline fundamentalism. As such, it means a LOT that either stood up to this, and the only thing that might have been appropriate would have been to report this to the SEC. I did a quick search on what “unlicensed securities” seems to mean, and apparently the SEC has been cracking down on this lately. So a lot of people could have been spared a lot of loss and heartache if they’d done this.

In related news, Wal-Mart is looking for a site for a new distribution center, and the facility is conveniently located on Calumet right between the Indiana Toll Road (I-90) and I-94……..

Aspiring to be a stick in the mud.