CA CA - John Beck, 73, Alameda, 9 Feb 2016 #2

[katydid23]

That's definitely crossed our minds! The picture at Lands End showed him still carrying the file. If he threw it away it was later, and it's never been found.

That's one reason I think he may have escaped into a new life. Those file papers were never found anywhere. Makes me wonder...

 

[Legally Bland]

I've just tried different search terms on the ICIJ database.

John N. Beck II, of 1024 Regent Street, Alameda, California was/is an officer of a company called 'Cyberworld Corporation' incorporated in the Cook Islands in 1998.

Cyberworld appears to be defunct/struck off, but I think it's fair to say JB has been involved in offshore dealings in the past, even if it's just this one company.

https://offshoreleaks.icij.org/nodes/42512

It's probably worth posting the disclaimer:
_______________

DISCLAIMER


There are legitimate uses for offshore companies and trusts. We do not intend to suggest or imply that any persons, companies or other entities included in the ICIJ Offshore Leaks Database have broken the law or otherwise acted improperly. Many people and entities have the same or similar names. We suggest you confirm the identities of any individuals or entities located in the database based on addresses or other identifiable information. If you find an error in the database please get in touch with us.

https://offshoreleaks.icij.org/

 

[Lilibet]

I've just tried different search terms on the ICIJ database.

John N. Beck II, of 1024 Regent Street, Alameda, California was/is an officer of a company called 'Cyberworld Corporation' incorporated in the Cook Islands in 1998.

Cyberworld appears to be defunct/struck off, but I think it's fair to say JB has been involved in offshore dealings in the past, even if it's just this one company.

https://offshoreleaks.icij.org/nodes/42512

It's probably worth posting the disclaimer:
_______________

DISCLAIMER


There are legitimate uses for offshore companies and trusts. We do not intend to suggest or imply that any persons, companies or other entities included in the ICIJ Offshore Leaks Database have broken the law or otherwise acted improperly. Many people and entities have the same or similar names. We suggest you confirm the identities of any individuals or entities located in the database based on addresses or other identifiable information. If you find an error in the database please get in touch with us.

https://offshoreleaks.icij.org/

Great research LB! That's definitely circumstantial evidence that JB could have stashed money offshore to hide it from the FTC. Keep up the good work!

The Cook Islands are touted as a place to put money and possessions in trust for people who are at risk of being sued. Anyone winning a suit has to deal with the Cook Islands to get any money, so most give up or settle for pennies on the dollar. The secrecy makes it desirable for anyone with lots of money.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/15/business/international/paradise-of-untouchable-assets.html

 

[Lilibet]

One thing that's important to remember is that the amount won by the FTC represents the amount lost by consumers of these schemes, not the amount made by the defendants. JB's family claims that he did not get rich selling his program. But his customers apparently paid $113 million for his useless product, so where did the money go? Even if Gravink and Hewitt took a hypothetically huge cut like 95%, JB's share would have been $5,650,000. Not exactly small change. Where is it?

https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/pre...court-judgment-against-massive-get-rich-quick

https://www.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/documents/cases/2012/05/120501johnbeckorder.pdf

 

[neesaki]

I kept seeing Mossack Fonseca pop up as the "agent" of many of these offshore investors. This is rather interesting about the company.

Mossack Fonseca: Inside the firm that helps the super rich hide their money

[FONT=&amp]To be helpful, Mossack Fonseca offered a “virtual” office service for its spooked customers. For $1,500 a year, the company would set up a fake email account, using the domain @tradedirect.biz. Wealthy clients could correspond using anonymous invented names.

[/FONT][FONT=&amp]Some in the files leap out at you: Harry Potter, Winnie Pooh and Daniel Radcliffe. Obviously not the real one.[/FONT]

https://www.theguardian.com/news/2016/apr/08/mossack-fonseca-law-firm-hide-money-panama-papers

 

[nannymo]

Ya'll are so smart! I have read some of this data, but it seems like you could dig to China (or Panama) and never get all the info you need. If this is our John Beck (and I think it is) this just furthers my gut instinct he is in hiding. Thank you!

 

[Lilibet]

The article that talks about the settlement with his wife says that he is presumed dead, so you didn't mislead anyone. I'm not sure there is life insurance or if it would pay to the beneficiaries or not.

"...a California federal judge on Tuesday allowed the deal to proceed because the husband is presumed dead."

https://www.law360.com/articles/939031/missing-alleged-fraudster-s-wife-on-hook-for-1-75m

I’m adding more detail to this post for the record since the link doesn’t always open completely. It explains the terms of the settlement with Joyce Beck. The balance the government receives in this agreement is $828,771 and she can keep their house and $400,000.

I’m not sure what the bolded part of this sentence means...
“The settlement resolves any ongoing disputes between Joyce Beck and the FTC, and also provides for a trade of rights under which the net value of the property to be obtained by the receiver will be more than the value released.”
BBM
Perhaps any increase in the value of the retirement account goes to the receiver?


Law360, New York (June 28, 2017, 8:48 PM EDT) -- The wife of an alleged get-rich-quick scammer whose company was hit with a record $478.9 million fine by the Federal Trade Commission will relinquish more than $1.75 million in assets to the receiver in her missing husband’s bankruptcy proceedings after a California federal judge on Tuesday allowed the deal to proceed because the husband is presumed dead.

U.S. District Court Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald approved the deal between the receiver, Robb Evans & Associates LLC, and Joyce Beck, the wife of John Beck — who was personally ordered in 2012 to pay the FTC more than $113 million for the allegedly deceptive marketing of his coaching programs before disappearing early last year. Under the terms of the deal, Joyce Beck turns over the assets of her pension plan to the receiver in her husband’s Chapter 7 proceedings, and in exchange is allowed to keep her house.

“The court agrees with the receiver that the settlement is fair, equitable, and within the receiver’s sound business judgment,” Judge Fitzgerald said in the minute order. “The settlement resolves any ongoing disputes between Joyce Beck and the FTC, and also provides for a trade of rights under which the net value of the property to be obtained by the receiver will be more than the value released.”

<snipped for focus>

In 2015, the court appointed a receiver to liquidate Beck&#8217;s assets and collect on the judgment. Beck was scheduled to attend a creditors&#8217; meeting Feb. 9, 2016, but he did not show up. He has not been seen since then and is presumed dead, the court said.
<snipped for focus>

Joyce Beck believes her husband is dead, the court said.

Joyce Beck was never named as a defendant in the FTC&#8217;s actions against her husband. The retirement accounts she will turn over have a value of $1,755,388.49. According to the settlement, she will keep $400,000 and after this amount and taxes are deducted, the balance will be $828,771.85, the court said.

Judge Fitzgerald said that during the hearing on the motion, he asked whether the settlement would still be valid if John Beck turned up alive.

&#8220;Counsel explained why John Beck is almost certainly dead,&#8221; the court said. &#8220;This belief is based on the circumstances of his disappearance and the widespread search efforts in its aftermath. In addition, counsel represented that Joyce Beck has the right under California community property law to sign the settlement and swap the property. The settlement also addresses the procedure to be followed if John Beck is alive and involves himself in the litigation.&#8221;

<snipped>
BBM

https://www.law360.com/articles/939031/missing-alleged-fraudster-s-wife-on-hook-for-1-75m

 

[GigTu]

JB really did a number on his family. I have no respect for that man, and do not believe for one second that he is deceased. Most likely he's living it up somewhere with a new mate.

Thanks for compiling all of that, Lilibet.

 

[Tssiemer]

JB really did a number on his family. I have no respect for that man, and do not believe for one second that he is deceased. Most likely he's living it up somewhere with a new mate.

Thanks for compiling all of that, Lilibet.

I would take this as a possibility if he wasn't 73. I don't know, some awful things did happen but I don't think any of this was his intent.


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[Lilibet]

I would take this as a possibility if he wasn't 73. I don't know, some awful things did happen but I don't think any of this was his intent.


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Well, 73 isn’t that old really. The closer I get the younger it seems. My husband will arrive there in a couple of weeks. But he looks a LOT younger than JB! :heartluv:

That being said, it’s also possible something awful did happen to him on the way to whatever he was intending to do. I have never ruled out his former partners G and H.

 

[nannymo]

Keeping your house and $400,000 at the age of 73 doesn't sound too bad to me. Certainly not worth committing suicide over. The more I learn about this case, the more I think someone picked him up, took him somewhere and he caught a train, boat or something to paradise! Probably living comfortably in another country. JMO

 

[Lilibet]

Keeping your house and $400,000 at the age of 73 doesn't sound too bad to me. Certainly not worth committing suicide over. The more I learn about this case, the more I think someone picked him up, took him somewhere and he caught a train, boat or something to paradise! Probably living comfortably in another country. JMO

I doubt JB would have gotten as good a deal as his wife did. Losing the house was part of the original settlement. But they would have been OK according to their kids, who would make sure of it. So I agree that suicide was pointless and hurtful. He couldn&#8217;t have known that his wife would receive anything, and it clearly took some legal help for that to happen.

I think leaving is quite possible. He spent his youth near Lands End, so it could have been a last visit before meeting his &#8220;ride.&#8221; He wouldn&#8217;t expect to be photographed. That was a fluke. Of course the same could be said for suicide, but when and where? There is no sign of him.

 

[neesaki]

I doubt JB would have gotten as good a deal as his wife did. Losing the house was part of the original settlement. But they would have been OK according to their kids, who would make sure of it. So I agree that suicide was pointless and hurtful. He couldn’t have known that his wife would receive anything, and it clearly took some legal help for that to happen.

I think leaving is quite possible. He spent his youth near Lands End, so it could have been a last visit before meeting his “ride.” He wouldn’t expect to be photographed. That was a fluke. Of course the same could be said for suicide, but when and where? There is no sign of him.

That is so right about the fluke of being photographed..... Seriously, what are the odds ?!

 

[GigTu]

The picture is actually a really photogenic shot too. Rockwellian. Like it was staged to make the area appear serene and safe.

 

[Lilibet]

The picture is actually a really photogenic shot too. Rockwellian. Like it was staged to make the area appear serene and safe.

It did appear serene. But I wonder what was going through JB’s mind at the moment he was photographed.

 

[nannymo]

I agree with everything ya'll are saying. The one thing that makes me think he didn't commit suicide is the folder. Why carry that folder all day? I think it was the stuff he needed to make his new life possible.

As for the picture, he looks very forlorn from the rear. Dejected and sad...

Either way I don't have much respect for him as a man. Leaving all this stuff for his wife to have to clean up is sorry. Weather he is sipping toddies on a beach or deceased by his own hand. It's a lousy thing to do to your family.

 

[Gardener1850]

I guess we're gathering to sit in silence while we wait for JB to be found or come back. For anyone new, it's best to read the first thread. But here's a quick recap.

John Nelson Beck disappeared in Oakland CA after his wife dropped him off for an appointment downtown. Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) surveillance video showed him on the platform about to board a train to SF soon after. His computer showed a number of searches and street views from early that morning, including a search for directions to Sutro Baths and Land's End in SF by the ocean and near the Presidio and the Golden Gate Bridge.

John's family and friends actively searched on foot and on Instagram, looking for any sign of him. A friend of John's daughters, Joy, was very active here on the thread for awhile. Soon, a photo of John walking a trail at Land's End was found on an Instagram account of a filmmaker from LA. He had taken the photo at 12:09 p.m the day John disappeared and cooperated with the family. John has never been seen or heard from again. There have been no phone or bank records since he disappeared.

Soon, MSM reported that JB was part of an FTC suit against several companies selling get-rich-quick methods of making money in real estate. He was held responsible for $113 million. He declared chapter 7 bankruptcy and the meeting he missed was near the end of that process. Disappearing at that point left unprotected several assets that would have been protected such as his residence and retirement, so his absence means that his wife will lose everything. So it seems that there was no rational reason to disappear or end his life.

Some believe JB had money stashed offshore and started a new life elsewhere. Others believe he committed suicide. And others, like me, waffle between the two. His family followed every possible lead, but now believe it's likely that he ended his life. It's tragic for them.

There isn't much left to say...at least not that I can think of at the moment. Anyone else?

Unidentified skeletal remains (adult) found today in the Presidio: http://www.ktvu.com/news/ktvu-local-news/skeletal-remains-found-in-the-presidio

I have not followed this case but thank you, Lilibet, for the summary. Could the remains found in the link above be John Beck?

 

[Gardener1850]

Unidentified skeletal remains (adult) found today in the Presidio: http://www.ktvu.com/news/ktvu-local-news/skeletal-remains-found-in-the-presidio

I have not followed this case but thank you, Lilibet, for the summary. Could the remains found in the link above be John Beck?

Thread for the above UID: http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...und-in-wooded-area-of-the-Presidio-3-Jan-2018

 

[Lilibet]

Thread for the above UID: http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...und-in-wooded-area-of-the-Presidio-3-Jan-2018

Thanks! Just coming here to post. I posted JB&#8217;s info on that thread.

 

[moonriverfarm]

Hmmmmmmm....