Posted on 06/04/2019 5:49:19 AM PDT by Moonman62
We wonder what reaction Bernie Madoff is having in the cell that’s serving as home for all of his life sentences, now that DC Solar’s alleged Ponzi scheme has claimed its third financial victim, this one more severe than the last.
Just under a month ago, Progressive and Hancock Whitney reported that they’d been hit by the alleged $810 million scheme, with Progressive reporting “tens of millions” in losses and Hancock Whitney, a bank with locations in Louisiana and Mississippi, had to lower its first quarter earnings by $10.1 million.
The newest development is much, much larger, as multinational holding conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway shared that the recent $377 million loss that the company experienced recently was related to DC Solar. The loss came as an “income tax expense adjustment” once the conglomerate learned about “allegations of fraudulent income conduct” relating to DC Solar. Berkshire Hathaway’s initial investment in the bankrupt former PV manufacturer and distributor was $340 million.
The DC Solar saga has been rolling since December, when the FBI raided company headquarters in Benicia, California, as well as the home of the company’s CEO. Per an affidavit, the scheme operated as follows:
(Excerpt) Read more at pv-magazine-usa.com ...
The above story is about a month old but there is a new Bloomberg story out today:
https://www.newsmax.com/finance/streettalk/berkshire-hathaway-buffett-couple/2019/06/04/id/918818/
It’s the future. WAY WAY OUT future.
Old devious Warren Buffett was so hungry for tax breaks that he invested in a Ponzi scheme. Buffett is a crook who constantly pontificates about how the little people should be paying a higher capital gains tax rate.
They’ll just whack some jobs and benefits at Heinz Ketchup. Problem solved.
Warren Buffett was once played by Ed Asner in a movie.
A stroke of absolutely perfect casting IMO.
Surebeam.
I wonder how much we paid in tax dollars for this Ponzi scheme. And who are the politicians that pushed for those dollars?
Newsmax.com
EXCERPT The Couple Who Feds Allege Scammed Berkshire Hathaway for Millions
The Carpoffs managed to parlay a do-good incentive to encourage solar investments into an $800 million fraud scheme. Promising big federal tax credits and profits, their pitch enticed sophisticated investors, even though it came from an enterprise little-known outside of California and the car-racing world.
Not only did Berkshire bite, sinking $340 million alone, but so did insurer Progressive Corp. It had to reverse tax benefits worth more than $150 million due mostly to its DC Solar investments. A half-dozen or so regional banks were financial backers, too, including East West Bancorp Inc., Valley National Bancorp and United Financial Bancorp Inc. All plunked their money in funds set up by DC Solar that afforded significant tax credits and possible profits.
The company was supposed to use the money to build mobile generators, which supply power at sporting events and other outdoor venues. But evidence suggested DC Solar “engaged in nearly no legitimate business,” the government said. The company built and leased only a fraction of the more than 12,000 mobile units it had claimed were in use, the FBI said. Instead, the company allegedly used much of the money from new investors to pay off old ones — and to fund the couple’s spending.
DC Solar’s precipitous fall is now forcing many of the investors to take charges on tax breaks that they thought were worth millions of dollars. It’s also putting the spotlight on the federal tax credit, which since 2006 has helped fuel solar’s surge from an alternative electrical resource to the U.S. mainstream. Dozens of the country’s biggest companies, from JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Bank of America Corp. to even paint maker Sherwin-Williams Co., now invest in renewable energy to benefit from the tax credits. (Sherwin-Williams was among DC Solar’s investors.)
While the program has been largely free of irregularities, the DC Solar tale now stands as a warning sign of how investors, perhaps too hungry for the credits, may be lax in scrutinizing the health of the underlying business. Indeed, the alleged scam started to crack only when a former employee told federal authorities that they believed the number of leased mobile units claimed by DC Solar was false, according to a court filing.
“Having that pot of money incentivizes this type of behavior,” said Nicolas Loris, an economist at the conservative-leaning Heritage Foundation think tank, commenting generally on tax credits. “Sometimes it’s difficult to catch this behavior because of the intricacy of the way these policies are woven into our energy markets.”
A million here, a million there, pretty soon you are talking real money.
Warren Buffett said he never invests in something he doesn’t understand.
Solar is a commodity and the only way to survive in it is manufacturing in China.
His chance to scam yet another bunch of dumb investors ended with Solendra.
“Buffett is a crook who constantly pontificates about how the little people should be paying a higher capital gains tax rate.”
What was ironic was Buffett commenting about Trump’s taxes while he was still fighting his tax assessment from about ten years prior. These solar credits et al are just an example of what used to be called abusive tax shelters.
Now we learn that the names Warren Buffet and Progressive will ignite the FBI and they go into swift action!
Nice to know that some people get attention that isn’t devious from the FBI.
Progressive is a lib run company, thus, the name................SUCKERS!.................
Progressive........................It couldn’t happen to a better company...........................
lots more detail:
4 Jun: Bloomberg: The Couple Who Feds Say Scammed Berkshire Hathaway for Millions
The FBI alleges that DC Solar ran $800 million Ponzi-type scheme using lure of big federal tax credits
By Brian Eckhouse, Katherine Chiglinsky, and Mark Chediak, With assistance by Anousha Sakoui, and Steven Church
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-06-04/the-couple-who-feds-say-scammed-buffett-s-berkshire-hathaway
They scammed the scammers..................All it took was the words: SOLAR, and TAX CREDTS, and the libs went for it like a Bass and a dragonfly..................
Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.
That’s actually a Bloomberg article. You may want the mods to delete it.
-PJ
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