The Blogfather

Globe Guild is out to lunch, and dinner

Creative writing and "guaranteed lifetime jobs" don't mix
It's akin to "guaranteed creativity"

Sorry fellas and girls, but the real world is beckoning to you Boston Globe writers and back office folks, and you aren't paying attention.

Your employer is losing money big time. The newspaper you "work" at was worth $1.1 billion sixteen years ago when the New York Times bought it, but the owners can't find a buyer for a tenth of that today.

Two hundred Globe writers have "guaranteed lifetime jobs" and presumably were a hunk of the vote to turn down management's offer which was a requirement to avoid  shutting down this news source.

What will happen to these "guaranteed lifetime jobs" when, not if, The Globe declares bankruptcy?

Do the writers actually believe that Globe readers "owe" them anything? Does my Starbuck's barista "owe" me anything other than the coffee I paid for?

It's the other way around. Journalists owe their readers a hell of a lot more news for the money you are getting paid at what Globe peers call "the velvet coffin."

When Globe columnists write twice a week rather than daily, when the rest of the Globe's writers are unwilling to knock out a couple news stories every day, then some other media will do it, and the Globe will end up in the dust bin of obsolescence.

Assigning fault

It won't be the fault of The Boston Globe or the New York Times. It will be the fault of overcompensated, under-worked writers and office staff along with the former owners who granted these foolish indulgences.

What do these prima donas think it takes to cover a news story? It requires a native curiosity coupled with the ability to write simple declarative sentences into a story which explains who, what, when, where and why in the first paragraph.

It isn't rocket science, literally. That does require advanced education.

The number of Americans who are out of work is nearly 10 per cent and the newspaper industry is archaic at best. Unless a business shows a reasonable profit, there is no possibility that even a billionaire will buy it and be willing to absorb the $50 million a year losses at this newspaper.

Instead either the current owners, the New York Times, or anyone they sell The Globe to, will simply declare bankruptcy which will kill every union contract along with those "lifetime guaranteed jobs."

Globe's Guild members had best get their heads out of the sand, and look around at the real world.

But geniuses who turn down a 10% pay cut in favor of a 23% one, aren't wise enough to be working for The Globe anyway. As the poet Friedrich Schiller said, "Against stupidity, even the Gods struggle in vain."

Disclaimer: I have been a Newspaper Guild member myself when I worked at the New York Post in the 1960s. That was then, this is now. All the protections which labor unions (the Newspaper Guild is a such) fought for at the beginning of the 20th century are now enshrined in federal laws. Unions are as obsolete as lazy writers. - Walter Brooks, Editor, Cape Cod TODAY.

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Obama, Patrick may tax sugar next

Sodas a Tempting Tax Target
Taxes have little effect on this sweet habit

"A tax on sugar to fight obesity.
Is probably the best thing to do at least-ity." - Blogfather, 2009.

"Sugar, rum and tobacco are commodities which are nowhere necessaries of life, which are become objects of almost universal consumption, and which are therefore extremely proper subjects of taxation." - Adam Smith, The Wealth of Nations, 1776.

That quotation, from the great philosopher of capitalism, appeared at the start of an article that ran a few weeks ago in The New England Journal of Medicine. The article argued for taxing Coke, Pepsi, Gatorade, Red Bull and any other sugar-sweetened beverage, largely to combat obesity.

The authors were Kelly Brownell, a longtime obesity researcher at Yale, and Thomas Frieden, the New York City health commissioner. Since the article appeared, President Obama appointed Dr. Frieden to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

So one of the nation's top public health officials is now a fierce proponent of a soda tax. Meanwhile, other Obama advisers and some Senate staff members have been talking about such a tax - which wouldn't apply to diet soda or real juice - as a way to help pay for expanded health insurance. Among 15 options for paying for health care reform, a new Senate Finance Committee analysis lists a "sugar-sweetened beverage excise tax."

Coca-Cola and PepsiCo hate this idea, of course, and they're fighting hard (if quietly) against it... NY Times.
_____

Massachusetts' Proposed Tax on Sweets May Not Dampen Demand

John Auerbach, the Massachusetts public health commissioner, acknowledged in an interview that the main objective of the sugar tax is revenue generation, not behavior modification. The $43.5 million the state expects to collect annually from taxes on candy and soft drinks -- both regular and diet varieties -- would go to a fund for public health services, including community health centers, dental care, and violence prevention.

When Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick proposed a 5 percent premium on sugary treats last week, his administration called it a sin tax with a bonus: The levy, a briefing paper stated, would be "a critical first step in discouraging the consumption of these empty calories," according to a report in the Boston Globe.

But there is little evidence that an extra nickel or dime for a candy bar would significantly dampen demand for products blamed for fueling the nation's obesity epidemic, the newspaper reported.

Chicago researchers who studied the effects of state tax policies on consumer behavior concluded that modest fees on candy and soft drinks produce equally modest effects on waistlines and consumption. "If the state's purpose of a 5 percent tax is to drive down the obesity rate, then that's an overstatement of what it's likely to do," Frank Chaloupka, director of the Institute for Health Research and Policy at the University of Illinois at Chicago, told the Boston Globe. "The bottom line is that the taxes are really too low to significantly affect obesity." States big and small, from California to Rhode Island, tack a surcharge onto soft drinks and candy. In all, 33 states have sales taxes on soda or candy as of Jan. 1, 2008, with most rates hovering between 4 and 6 percent, according to the report... Convenience Store News.

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Ode to the Valley of Swat

In the Pakistan valley of Swat,
The Taliban are hatching a plot.
They were told to by God,
Which seems exceedingly odd,
Since nice people is the one thing they're not.

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Geriatric's revenge

Watch out for those Senior Citizens! (from a friend)

The other day I went downtown to run a few errands. I went into the local coffee shop for a snack.
I was only there for about 5 minutes, and when I came out, there was this cop writing out a parking ticket.

I said to him, 'Come on, man, how about giving a retired person a break'?

He ignored me and continued writing the ticket. His insensitivity annoyed me, so I called him a 'Nazi.'

He glared at me and then wrote out another ticket for having worn tires.

So I proceeded to call him a 'doughnut eating Gestapo.' He finished the second ticket and put it on the windshield with the first.

Then he wrote a third ticket when I called him a moron in blue.

This went on for about 20 minutes. The more I talked back to him the more tickets he wrote.

Personally, I didn't really care. I came downtown on the bus, and the car that he was putting the tickets on had one of those bumper stickers that said, 'STOP the Wind Farm'

I try to have a little fun each day now that I'm retired.

The doctor tells me that it's important for my health.

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First in a series of Cape Cod Parables

Cape Parable #1
Marketing on Olde Cape Cod

The way we were when - In these true vignettes from the Cape of the 1960s when ye olde editor worked at a local newspaper. We would love to pass along your similar experiences. Email me.

Orleans, 1965: I was ad manager at The Cape Codder weekly in this town named for a French Duke, but I brought my Greenwich Village, NYC habits with me.

Every evening after work, I would stop at the long-gone Livingston Pharmacy on Main Street (where Westie's Shoes is today).

I had reserved a daily copy of the New York Herald Tribune, and I always grabbed a Skybar along with it.

That sequence proceded without a problem for two years until one afternoon when I picked up my Tribune there were no Skybars in their accustomed place on the candy shelves.

There weren't any the next day or the next or the next.

I assumed they had run out of my favorite candy bar, a correct assumption I later discovered, and allowed a week to pass before I asked owner Urban (yes, that was his name) Livingston if he was going to get some more Skybars in soon.

That special form of Olde Cape marketing

He replied, "No."

I asked if he could still acquire them, and he said, "Yes."

Being a smart marketing genius I asked if it was because they were not selling well enough to handle, but he said, "no, we sell lots of them."

So, naturally I inquired, "Then why aren't you going to reorder them?"

Urban replied with a olde-time Cape Cod wisdom which escapes me to this day, "Because I can't keep them in stock."

Moral of the story

Never let your customers tell you how to run your business.

I swear this account is true word-for-word, and anyone who has lived around here more than forty years will get a sense of déjà vu.

I hope that any readers who did will add a comment or send me their "Olde Cape" experience to retell here.

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Liberal Editor costs Obama the Election

Walter Brooks blamed for Barack's one-vote loss

This CNNBC video reveals the alarming result of one voter failing to cast his ballot on November 4.
Click here or either video screen to see this short spoof of our editor, then customize it yourself.

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U.S. Marshals Seize Indicted Embezzler's Property

• Judge orders 3 houses to be seized by U.S. Marshals, Florida boats and cars already seized
• All 5 boats ordered to be seized
• All but 2 cars appear to have been seized
  
• $1.9 million Harwich Port house remains at status quo
• Windle FAQ below 

By Julie Brooks

At summer's end, as his empire rapidly crumbles, accused Harwich Port embezzler Jeffrey Windle, prisoner #49175 at the Plymouth County Correctional Facility, faces a conference on September 17th which may or may not determine his fate.   

Instead of reeling in  striped bass from Nantucket Sound from one of his Cape Cod  boats , or catching grouper in the Gulf  of Mexico from one of his Florida boats,  Jeffrey spent his summer as a landlubber in America's Hometown, Plymouth.   Perhaps he was able to enjoy the weather by working on the prison's 90-acre farm.  

Obsessed by boats and landscaping to a degree which surpasses even most Harwich Port residents, (and that's saying a lot!)  Jeffrey's fate is now in the hands of the federal court.  But I think it's safe to say this oft-described neatnik is not likely to be polishing his brass boat cleats or admiring his hydrangeas for quite a few years to come.

 Jeffrey Windle, age 41, who was arrested May 2 on charges that he embezzled $14 million from his employer, Cambium Learning of Natick, and also $200,000- $400,000 from the South Dennis Congregational Church, where he served as a volunteer treasurer, has been in custody in the Plymouth County Correctional Facility since his arrest, where he is being held with out bail.

 On June 26th,   he was indicted by a federal grand jury on 5 counts each of mail fraud, wire fraud, and money laundering.  Some of Jeffrey Windle's boats and cars at his Florida compound were seized July 16th by the U.S.  Marshal Service, according to a source close to the Florida property, but his classic VW and his Donzi boat remain.     On June 30 his attorney, John Moscardelli, entered a plea of not guilty and a status conference was scheduled for August 4th.   At this conference, a final status conference was scheduled for September 17th.

What a difference 4 months makes
Less than 4 months ago, Jeffrey Windle was commuting 5 hours per day, in one of his two Mercedes,  to Natick to work at his job as Director of Budget and Finance for Cambium Learning.   He was paid $100,000 per year.    He lived in a $1.9 million house in Harwich which he purchased in 2004, shortly after he began working full-time for Cambium.   He did extensive renovations, including interior work and putting in a lighted tennis court and pool.    He enjoyed going fishing in his 5 luxury boats, some of which he kept at Allen Harbor in Harwich and some at his Florida compound.     He was in the process of building a home in Duxbury, held a mortgage on a property on Route 6A in Dennis, and owned another house on Trotting Park Road in Dennis.  His extensive renovations  and landscaping on his two adjacent houses on the Intracoastal waterway in Placida,  Florida were just being finished. 

His wife Jeannine, whose love of shopping was reportedly legendary, was a stay-at-home mother to their two children.  The couple were supporters and hosts for the Harwich Mariners.   A few months before, he had forfeited a $450,000 deposit on a $4.5 million home overlooking Wychmere Harbor when he backed out of the sale the night before the closing.   He had also ended negotiations with a marine company to buy a 1/3 stake in the company for $7.5 million.   He had meetings with a local bank about getting a $2 million commercial loan. 

Rarely traveling out of town, (a trait common to many embezzlers), Jeffrey managed his complex  empire by making frequent phone calls from his office.  In April of this year, Cambium's CFO, Dave Caron,  approached Jeffrey with questions about why the company's $870,000 insurance premium to Blue Cross/Blue Shield had gone unpaid.  It was the beginning of the end.

During his employment at Cambium Learning from 2004 - 2008, Jeffrey Windle purchased 5 houses, 5 boats, and at least 5 cars, whose combined purchase prices total approximately $7 million.   According to my sources, the rest of the money alleged to have been stolen has not been located in the form of bank accounts or tangible assets.

 3 never-been-lived-in houses

Recently, a federal judge ordered that the U.S. Marshal Service seize Jeffrey's two houses in Florida, located at 260 and 270 Capstan Drive in Placida, and also a property at 261 Crescent Street in Duxbury.   (Pictured right, second one down).    The Duxbury property was purchased in February 2007 for  $520,000.  The existing house was razed and a new house was in the process of being built at the time of Jeffrey's arrest.  Although Jeffrey has not yet stood trial or been found guilty, these properties were ordered to be seized due to the imminent danger of their loss in value between now and the trial, if there is one--the Duxbury house is under construction, and has no doors, and the Florida properties, which are two adjacent houses on the Intracoastal Waterway which Jeffrey purchased and then extensively remodeled and landscaped, are in danger of having at least $250,000 worth of landscaping die because the water has been turned off and no one is maintaining the property.  

The houses have never been lived in and no one has been managing or maintaining the property since Windle's arrest on May 2nd.  There are $300,000 worth of liens on the Florida houses,  filed by companies contracted to do finish work, irrigation, and other services.   Another source tells me that all the contractors had keys to the properties and that apparently the locks had not been changed.

In mid-July, a source close to the Florida properties informed me that a van appeared at night and removed some objects from the house.  The president of Cambium Learning was called and reportedly, when he tried to get the local police to respond, they said that they had to be directed by the FBI to do so.    Allegedly the FBI could not be reached.  No one returned to the house until the U.S. Marshals seized at least 2 boats and at least 2 cars in mid-July.

What does the U.S. Marshal Service do with confiscated assets?
A visit to the U.S. Marshal Service's website answers this question handily.  In nearly all cases they auction it.  Whether it's assets confiscated from drug dealers, or whatever the story, the Marshal service auctions its property, usually online through a third-party site, Bid4Assets.   The money from the sale of the confiscated goods, in the Windle case at least, as detailed in the judge's order, will be held in escrow by the US Marshal service until Jeffrey's trial is over or he peads guilty.  If he's found guilty, Cambium gets the money.  If he's not, presumably, he gets the money.  I have signed up for Bid4Asset's email alerts and check the site regularly--I haven't seen any of Jeffrey's property yet.  

 Why did Jeffrey Windle plead not guilty?
I have to admit, this threw me for a loop.  I, along with many people, assumed that the trail of evidence linking Jeffrey to the embezzlements was so solid that he would plead guilty, like many white collar criminals, in exchange for reduced time in a federal facility somewhere.  But instead, his attorney entered a plea of not guilty.    Perhaps the lowest maximum number of years Jeffrey was willing to agree to was not enough for the prosecutor, Carmen Ortiz, and so they are going to trial, where she must be reasonably certain a jury will find him guilty.   Or, perhaps his attorney was able to buy some time to allow for further negotiations.  A recently filed court document alludes to the fact that "no trial is expected to take place."  Perhaps this means he is going to enter a guilty plea sometime soon?

 Don't forget, as I have reported in a previous blog posting, that on June 19, 1998, (a bit more than 10 years ago), Jeffrey was released from a federal boot-camp-style prison , where he had served 18 months for filing false tax returns.  There are no more boot-camp style federal prisons, as they were shown not to reduce recidivism, as they were intended to, and they have since been phased out.  To serve your federal time at a boot camp instead of a regular federal prison was considered to be a privilege reserved for young or first -time offenders.

 Ten years later, it appears that Jeffrey hasn't learned his lesson, and I think the prosecutor is not happy about this at all.  After all, it's not the prosecutor's job to avoid going to trial at all costs--it's the prosecutor's job to put bad guys behind bars for as long as reasonably possible. 

Landscaping at properties in Harwich Port and Dennis looking surprisingly spiffy
Jeffrey and Jeannine's first house they purchased on Cape Cod is located at  346 Trotting Park Road in Dennis, adjacent to the Ezra Baker Elementary School.    The property is still in their names.   The tenant who was living in the Trotting Park Road property has reportedly moved out and that house was supposedly empty for most of the summer.  

 The Trotting Park Road's mortgage was paid off by funds allegedly embezzled from Cambium.  As recently as this week , the lawn at the Harwich Port house was being mowed by a landscaping service whose name I know but will not mention here.    I saw a well-muscled, shirtless and tattooed guy mowing in front of the hydrangeas just the other day.  Since there are numerous court documents showing that all Jeffrey and Jeannine's bank accounts have been frozen, I wonder who is paying the landscaper?  Between working, summertime fun and blogging, the landscaping at my house looks like s***.  I  wish I could afford a landscaper.   Particularly the one I saw at the Windle's house.  There' s just no justice in this world, I'll tell ya.

Cambium Learning versus J & J Marine Fabricating versus South Dennis Congregational Church
When $14 million goes missing, lawyers get hired.  Over the summer there has been a lot of activity around a separate civil lawsuits initiated by J & J Marine and by Cambium.  It's all about the boats and falls under admiralty, or maritime law, which has different and even more obfuscatory language (in my opinion) than  regular law.  ("Regular law"--that's my term-- a legal genius I'm not.)   Basically,  Jeffrey Windle was sued by J & J Marine Fabricating before  he was even arrested, on grounds that he owed this marine service over six figures in repairs, parts, and storage fees.   This was the same outfit that he was in negotiations with to buy a 1/3 stake in for $7.5 million.  He didn't buy them, and then they sued.     Then comes Cambium, filing suit saying that the boats belong to Cambium because they were paid for with Cambium's money, and that J & J  shouldn't get the money they're asking for because it's impossible to prove the repairs were done and "storage services" didn't  incur any out-of-pocket expenses for J & J.  And also, Cambium says, the South Dennis Congregational Church isn't entitled to the money since the funds were commingled and it isn't possible to establish which funds belonged to the church.

 Fraud insurance for the church
It has been reported to me that one of the few bills Jeffrey actually paid on time when he was the treasurer at the church was a fraud insurance premium, and it was not clear to my source whether or not the policy covered this particular incident.   Very thoughtful of him to  have paid the premium ;) It was also reported to me that Jeffrey allegedly took the church's nest egg within weeks of assuming his role as treasurer.    Allegedly, some people involved in running the church had their suspicions about Jeffrey but were reluctant to say anything because he purportedly made a substantial donation to the church every week.    The lawyer for the Church just resigned from the case.     It appears that Cambium has out-lawyered the other two plaintiffs on this one.

 The Windle FAQ
I get lots of emails and calls with some of these questions, so I decided to put together a FAQ.

 Where's Jeannine living? What's she doing?

Jeannine has reportedly recently moved out of the Harwich Port house and back into the Trotting Park Road house in Dennis, where she lived while Jeffrey was serving his first federal prison sentence ten years ago.    One could draw a logical conclusion that there is a job in Jeannine's future, but then again, this entire case is not bursting with logic.   Yes, the lawn jockey next to the stone inscribed "Windle" is still in the front yard, but the hosta around it  has grown so much over the summer that you can't read the stone.

 Is Jeannine going to face any criminal charges?

Allegedly, the FBI tried, but was not able to come up with, any evidence that Jeannine had knowledge of her husband's  activities. 

 What's going to happen to the $1.9 million Harwich Port house at 562 Main Street?

I don't know.  I check the Barnstable County registry of deeds site frequently and there's no activity as far as I can see.    

What about all the expensive furnishings, etc.  in the Harwich Port house? What's going to happen to those?

It would a violation of a court order for anything of value to be moved from the Harwich Port house.    If anyone notices anything regarding an estate sale on Craigslist or wherever, please for the love of God let me know. We'll hit the sale and then go to Brax for cocktails afterwards.

I have received many emails and calls with tips about this case.  All are appreciated.

Call or email me:   Julie Brooks --508-385-0003 x 106

 Photos (top to bottom): Jeffrey Windle's compound at 260 and 270 Capstan Drive, Placida, FL; his house at 261 Crescent Street, Duxbury, a 41' Tiara, a 41' Albemarle, a 31' Albemarle, a 24' Captain's launch sloop, a 2004 Mercedes E320, a 2005 Mercedes CLK500, a 2007 Mercedes GL450, a 46' Ocean Yacht.

All past blog postings on the Windle case:

Jeffrey Windle pleads "Not Guilty" - 7/3/08

Windle charged by US Attorney with 15 counts - 6/28/08

Help requested in locating accused embezzler's assets -6/13/08

Windle allegedly used Dennis church for money laundering - 5/26/08

$14 million in attachments filed in alleged Harwich embezzler case - 5/22/08

Alleged Harwich Port embezzler built lavish compound in Florida - 5/18/08

Alleged embezzler's attorney arrested for gun threat - 5/14/08

Accused embezzler's mark on Dennis - 5/12/08

Googleable: A Tale of Two Houses- 5/9/08

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Jeffrey Windle pleads "Not Guilty"

Electronic Clerk Notes for proceedings held before Magistrate Judge Judith G. Dein:

Posted on the US District Court's Public Document system today

Arraignment as to Jeffrey S. Windle (1) Count 1-5,6-10,11-15 held on 6/30/2008, Plea entered by Jeffrey S. Windle: Not Guilty on counts all.

Asst.US Attorney Ortiz and Attorney Moscardelli for the defense.; 1st conference is set for August 4, 2008 at 2:15pm (Court Reporter DR.) (Quinn, Thomas)

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Windle charged by US Attorney with 15 counts

  Harwich man accused of embezzling $14 million from employer, church

  On left is the $2 million dollar house on Route 28 in Harwich Port which Jeffrey Windle allegedly bought with embezzled funds from his job and his church. On the right is his new, rent-free home at the Plymouth House of Correction near Exit 5 on Route 3 in Plymouth.

Sordid details below, being held at Plymouth House of Corrections

Windle may also have taken between as much as $400,000 from his church, according to an FBI agent's testimony investigating the case.Federal prosecutors have charged a Cape Cod man with embezzling nearly $14 million from his employer, and using much of the cash to buy real estate including a $2 million dollar estate overlooking Wychmere Harbor and another in Placida, Florida valued at $2.5 million as well as pleasure boats and expensive cars.  U.S. Attorney Michael Sullivan said Friday a grand jury charged Jeffrey Windle with mail fraud - five counts of wire fraud and another five counts of money laundering.

See the entire indictment as a linked PDF below.

The 41-year-old was arrested on May 2nd, and has since been held in at The Plymouth House of Correction without bail.

Was company's Budget Director, church's treasurer

Prosecutors charged Jeffrey Windle with stealing nearly $14 million from Cambium Learning, a Natick-based provider of education materials for special-needs students. Windle was Cambium's budget director.  The indictment alleges Windle used some of the cash to help pay for his estates both here and in Florida. Other purchases made allegedly with the stolen money included several boats and costly imported automobiles.

As previously reported here (below) he is accused of stealing between $200,000 and $400,000 from his church, the South Dennis Congregational Church, where he was the volunteer treasurer.

List of charges:

• Counts 1-5:  Mail Fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1341):  Maximum punishment of 20 years' imprisonment, a fine of $250,000, and three years supervised release.
• Counts 6-10:  Wire Fraud (18 U.S.C. § 1343):  Maximum punishment of 20 years' imprisonment, a fine of $250,00, and three years supervised release.
• Counts 11-15: Money Laundering (18 U.S.C. § 1957):  Maximum punishment of 10 years' imprisonment, a fine of $250,000, and three years supervised release.
• Read the Windle saga by scrolling to the posts below, and read the official indictment in PDF form here.

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Help requested in locating accused embezzler's assets

• Fraud investigating firm requests help from anyone who has knowledge of Jeffrey and Jeannine's assets--totally confidential--see below for more info
• Jeffrey and Jeannine legally allow marine surveyer to evaluate boats
  
• Cambium Learning's bond rating decreased as a direct result of alleged embezzlement
• No electricity or water at Jeffrey's property in Florida with $250,000 worth of landscaping

Members of the Jeffrey Windle Fan Club have been parched for news lately, but a few tidbits have tumbled in over the last couple of weeks, and as always, I'm happy to share. Jeffrey Windle, 41, a former resident of Harwich Port who is accused of embezzling $14 million from his employer, Natick-based Cambium Learning, Inc. and between $200,000 and $400,000 from the South Dennis Congregational Church, was arrested on May 2nd and is in federal custody, being held without bail  (see previous blog postings on the Windle case at the bottom of this posting.)  Jeffrey's case is one the most spectacular allegations of embezzlement in Cape Cod history. 
Every day, I check the U.S. District Court of Boston's website and two other sources for news of Jeffrey's plea or sentencing, and in the last two weeks, there has been nada of interest except for a new document I'll explain below. We are rapidly approaching the end of June, when apparently, Jeffrey is supposed to plead guilty or not guilty, and be sentenced or go to trial, unless another extension is filed.

Since my last blog posting, I have heard from many people:  residents of the Placida, Florida neighborhood where Jeffrey's $2.5 million+ compound is located;  people formerly of Cambium Learning, Inc., the company he is accused of stealing $14 million from; the fraud investigating firm, Stroz Freidberg, which Cambium Learning hired to help locate Jeffrey and his wife Jeannine's assets;   people associated with the South Dennis Congregational Church, where Jeffrey acted as volunteer treasurer and also whose accounts he allegedly used to launder Cambium's money; as well as past personal acquaintances of Jeff's family and Jeannine's family.  The list goes on and on.  I have  emailed the 118-page court report which details Jeffrey's alleged embezzlement to at least 50 people from all over the country who have requested it. 

Please help Stroz Friedberg, the fraud investigating firm--dedicated and discreet email and phone line

Stroz Friedberg was hired by Cambium to locate as many of Jeffrey and Jeannine's assets as possible.    Cambium, which employs many people, is reeling from this incident and needs to get back what it can.     If you've been reading this blog, you can probably do the math and figure out that the houses, cars, and boats don't add up to $14 million.  Jeffrey and Jeannine were reportedly VERY big spenders on all sorts of things (that's for another blog posting).  If you know of anything or anyone who can point Stroz in the right direction it would be greatly appreciated.   They are looking for assets--bank accounts, real estate, etc.   I have spoken to the Senior Investigator, Thomas Kelly,  and he is a nice guy to deal with.   Here's what he emailed me:

 Stroz Friedberg Investigations ("SFI") is looking for anyone who may beable to provide information about Jeffrey or Jeannine Windle.  Specifically, we are looking to speak to anyone who may have engaged Jeffrey and Jeannine Windle in conversations with a specific focus on their source of wealth and their assets.  We have a dedicated email address and phone number that can be used to contact SFI with any relevant information.  All information will be confidential.
Email:   jwinfo@strozllc.com   Telephone:  (212) 766-6035   Thomas Kelley

Boring documents about boat surveying & out-of-state attorneys

There was a flurry of documents filed recently in the U.S. District Court in Boston (after two weeks of nothing) in the Windle case, and if anyone else who doesn't have a life wants to read them, I'll email them to you.  But in a nutshell, the documents say that Jeffrey and Jeannine have given their consent for Cambium Learnings' hired marine surveyor to evaluate (this must mean appraise) the boats.      There are also documents relating to Cambium's hiring attorneys in  New York and Florida for work on this case, even though the case is in Masschusetts.     I had to look up many legal terms in Wikipedia and I wish I could've uncovered something juicy but so far, zilcho.    These legal documents are a good cure for insomnia, I'll tell you.

Cambium Learning's bond rating decreased as a direct result of alleged embezzlement

This I've known for about two weeks.    Here's the bottom line:  Cambium Learning is a privately held company which does about $100 million per year in revenue.  What their net profit is on this, I don't know, but say it's $10 million.    Jeffrey allegedly stole $14 million, albeit over 4 years.   This company has had 3 CEO's in the past 6 years.  They have acquired companies and been acquired.  Their total debt stands at $131 million.  And recently, their corporate credit rating was cut from B to B-- by Moody's.   What this means is that when Cambium wants to borrow money, it is now going to have to pay 1 to 1.5 points above prime, according to a former stockbroker I spoke with. When you're borrowing millions, this works out to big bucks.   A recent comment on my previous blog posting reads:

I worked for that company for almost 6 years until last year. i still have friends there that tell me they owe just the garbage company over $ 40,000 and cant get the trash and card board hauled off.

Water cut off, Florida property's landscaping on brink of frying

Jeffrey and Jeannine own  two adjacent properties on the intracoastal waterway in Placida, Florida, which have very recently installed, very extensive landscaping worth upwards of $400,000.   (See picture at right.)  Since Jeffrey's arrest May 2,  no landscapers have maintained the property.  The neighbors were very concerned about what would happen to the property once the electricity and water were turned off for nonpayment,  since the automatic irrigation system is powered by electricity, and of course, water.

 Well, that has finally happened.    As of yesterday, the water and electricity were cut off.  My source tells me the landscaping will really "go to hell" now and will all be gone in 2-3 weeks in the Florida heat.    Concerned neighbors have contacted people at Cambium to see what can be done before this property turns into an ugly eyesore but Cambium has not acted.   Cambium did have someone out there taking pictures of the properties a couple of weeks ago.  

The situation reminds me of the doggerel which begins, "For want of a nail, the shoe was lost..."  I of course don't know all the legal ramifications of this, but I know that technically Cambium does not own the properties (yet) but they probably will soon.    It was Cambium's money which paid for the properties and  the landscaping.  I'm sure the electric and water companies don't care who pays the bill as long as they're paid.  And the properties will suffer a huge depreciation in value if all the landscaping dies (and affect the property values of the whole neighborhood as well.)  This whole thing was finally publicized locally in the Sarasota Herald Tribune on May 26th.   A total of $300,00 in liens have been filed by various subcontractors. 

I have received many emails and calls with tips about this case.  All are appreciated.

Call or email me:   Julie Brooks --508-385-0003 x 106

Past postings related to the Windle case:

Windle allegedly used church for money laundering

$14 million in attachments filed in alleged Harwich embezzler case

Alleged Harwich Port embezzler built lavish compound in Florida

Alleged embezzler's attorney arrested for gun threat

Accused embezzler's mark on Dennis

Googleable: A Tale of Two Houses

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