ATLANTA (AP) — With confidence and zeal, Ephren
Taylor riveted audiences at mostly black churches with a list of his impressive
accomplishments and an uncanny business sense. He had the blessing of top
clergy as he gave financial seminars from the pulpit on Sundays, promising
rock-solid investments — only many of the churchgoers said they haven't seen a
dime.
Two lawsuits filed this month claim the 29-year-old
Taylor was a con artist who targeted worshippers throughout at least five
states on the East Coast since 2004, swindling tens of millions of dollars in a
Ponzi scheme.
"He knew if he went to a Christian
African-American and said, 'I can take your hard-earned investment money, and
you're going to earn more money, but more importantly you're going to do good
for your church and community,' that they would fall for it hook line and
sinker," said Cathy Lerman, an attorney who sued Taylor in North Carolina.
The allegations have tarnished Taylor, who resigned
last year after becoming the chief executive of the holding company City
Capital, which had been based in North Carolina, when he was 23. Worshippers
would often be asked to invest in real estate and businesses tied to the
holding company.
The Secret Service and the secretary of state's
office in Georgia, where the other lawsuit has been filed, are investigating.
He has not faced any criminal charges.
Lawyers suing him say they don't know his
whereabouts, but he sent The Associated Press a statement after a reporter contacted
him through his website.
He said he planned to use his own money to help
those who feel "negatively impacted." He criticized his detractors
and compared himself to other financial heavyweights who were
"crucified" amid the economic downturn.
"Sometimes people will participate in a game
they don't have a stomach for, and when it goes south, they put the blame on
those that led that game," said Taylor, who did not respond to follow-up
questions.
In late 2009, Taylor came to an Atlanta megachurch
with his surefire pitch, according to the lawsuit in Georgia. He held a
financial seminar aimed at children on a Saturday, telling curious parents to
hold their questions. Flanked by Bishop Eddie Long the following day, he told
the 25,000 member congregation that his investors would buy can't-miss real
estate rather than take a risk on Wall Street.
"He pushed all the right buttons," said
Lillian Wells, who said she lost $122,000. "Everyone was tired of losing
money in the stock market, and this was an opportunity for a guaranteed return
on the money."
The bishop has declined to comment on the lawsuit,
but he urged Taylor in a video posted this year on YouTube to "do what's
right" and repay the money with interest. In May, Long settled a separate
lawsuit filed by four young men who accused him of sexual misconduct.
New Birth is one of the best-known ministries
preaching a form of the prosperity gospel, which teaches that God wants to
bless the faithful with earthly riches. Ministers in this tradition often hold
up their own wealth as evidence that the teaching works. Long has flaunted his
own success with flashy suits, expensive cars and large home on 20 acres.
Attorneys said many of the worshippers duped were
"socially conscious." But instead of lucrative returns, Taylor and
his company used incoming funds from new investors to pay back existing
clients, the attorneys said.
Taylor's inspiring success story helped build his
mystique. At the age of 12, he sold video games he designed. By 18, he and a
friend had helped create a job search engine called GoFerretGo that he claimed
was valued at more than $3 million, though one of the lawsuits questioned that
figure.
After he was tapped in 2006 as the chief executive
of City Capital, now based in California, he was quick to boast in media
interviews that the move made him the youngest black leader of a publicly
traded company in the U.S.
He wrote books about his financial savvy, appeared
on national news networks to offer financial advice and observations and landed
a spot speaking to a youth leader's summit at the 2008 Democratic National
Convention. He'd convince ministers to let him deliver a Sunday sermon, the
lawsuits say, and rev up the boasting of his TV appearances and client list
stacked with celebrities and athletes.
It was that record that attracted Joann White, a
61-year-old retiree who invested her life savings of $200,000 in his firm.
After years of fighting with Taylor and his associates, she said she lost all
but $20,000 of the money.
"I know that's so stupid now looking back at
it, but I saw him so often on TV, talking about how great he was," said
White, who lives in Belleville, Mich. "And I kind of fell into it."
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press.
Photo
Caption: Lillian Wells, 60, faces foreclosure as she sits in her home
Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2011 in Covington, Ga. Wells lost $122,000 in her life
savings that was given to Ephren Taylor's company after hearing him speak at an
Atlanta church. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
