100 Huntley Street starts publicly dealing with alleged affinity fraud

According the the Association of Certified Forensic Investigators of Canada, 2 out of every 5 businesses in Canada will be defrauded.

Churches and par-church organizations are easy targets, such as 100 Huntley Street/Crossroads Christian Communications.

I watched a documentary on Bernie Madoff last night, which got me thinking.

I’ve been clear as I’ve looked at Gordon Driver/Axcess Funds/Automation and the yanking of Ron and Reynold Rutledge as hosts of what was once the top religious show in Canada; that I’ve approached Crossroads Communications with direct questions by email.
They’ve chosen not to respond. 
I am not the only one who has not been given answers to basic questions from the tax exempt organization.
I believe the reality is 100 Huntley Street and Crossroad Christian Communications are not going to respond. As a tax payer they do answer to me, but they have much bigger problems than a nosy blogger right now. As a tax payer I have choices. I don’t have to give them a donation. I can report concerns to Revenue Canada and if I see any regulatory breaches in their broadcasting mandate, the CRTC.

I’ve also been clear that  I think Ron and Reynold Mainse were victims of the alleged ponzi scheme, and were not aware they were victimizers. I don’t think they have the smarts. I’m not saying that unkindly.
These men grew up in a very small circle of sheltered Canadian pentecostals in intermarried and  intertwined families whose  visionary parents were type A driven personalities. 
Sons of a preacher man are expected to step in their father’s footsteps and carry on the legacy whether they are suited for the responsibility or not. Their lives really are not their own.
I think Ron and Reynold Mainse and perhaps David Rutledge (my internal jury is still out on him) are a very public and classic example of the naiveness common in affinity fraud victims.
They have lived and worked in a closed faith environment where affinity fraud artists find a field ripe unto their personal harvest.

According to the Association of Certified Forensic Investigators of Canada people such as Ron and Reynold Mainse and their cousin David Rutledge involving others in an alleged ponzi scheme do not always meet the criteria of criminal intent.  Investors have blinders on (I think that was glaringly obvious in the Madoff documentary.:^).   While there are a lot of organizations, regulatory boards and individuals warning faith groups to take responsibility for their investments, people continue to be scammed for all kinds of reasons and may draw others into the con mans game for the following reasons. 

In 2004 Christianity Today published an article called The Fraudbuster which is as relevant to 100 Huntley Street today as it was when the magazine published this story.

My focus, while I’m not immune to passing on speculation and gossip about what the heck is going on at Crossroads Christian Communications, has been on the over 100 people US regulators say were taken in by Hamilton/Las Vegas resident Gordon Drivers alleged ponzi scheme.  The psychological impact of being conned is devastating. None of the investors who have found this blog are in the public anger stage as yet, and since it was a small circle of mostly large dynastic Canadian pentecostal families and close friends who were approached to invest, I don’t know if investors will find the courage to band together, do their homework and contact a good class action lawyer. 

One of the details I can’t pin down and readers don’t know as fact is whether or not Canadian investors have been approached by OSEC investigators. As the civil case involving Gordon Driver/Axcess goes through the US court system, there is no word on whether or not US regulators will proceed to a criminal trial.  Where does that leave Canadians?

The Ontario Exchange and Securities Commission working with US regulators filed a temporary order against Gordon Driver, his companies and David Rutledge, who left 100 Huntley over a year ago to work for Driver.  Crossroads Christian Communications didn’t bother to update their webpages, and as recently as last week David Rutledge was listed as an employee.  Crossroads is updating their webpages now, they are cleaning up information as fast as they can.

Why are faith communities such as 100 Huntley Street such easy targets?

One of the questions being asked is why isn’t media picking up this story?

National Canadian media are aware, in the world of ponzi schemes Drivers alleged operation is not huge. What makes this a story for national media is who was targeted and what the organization is doing about it.

As I’ve romped around online trying to get information on of the things I’ve noticed is how little attention Crossroads Christian Communications and 100 Huntley Street actually gets.

There is almost nothing. The occasional blog mentions “I’m going to be on 100 Huntley” or “why hasn’t CTS (the non-profit business of Crossroads Christian Communications) released their fall schedule yet?”
The company is not what it was, and since I don’t have access to the BBM, I think I’m making a safe guess that viewers are a diminishing older group who don’t spend time online.  
Having posted the Alexa and Quantcast numbers, it’s apparent 100 Huntley’s web presence is continuing in a slow decline.

While Pentecostals and independent pentecostals are one of the fastest growing faith groups in Canada, this media organization is not keeping pace. I question if they can.
Financial sites have picked  up the US civil case filing with the barest of details. That’s their job.
No media outlet in the US cares that what was once a major religious show in Canada is scrambling to prepare for the worst.
Canadian media outlets will run this story, whether or not they get co-operation from Crossroads is an unknown. If viewers cannot get a response to simple questions, and The Hamilton Spectator reporter is ignored, it’s hard to do a decent story.
I’ve seen no mention of this in Christian magazines and media across Canada yet. How are they going to report this? I don’t understand financial information and spent far to much of my time just trying to learn basic language. Christian magazine writers are at the same disadvantage I am. 
Worse perhaps. There are a lot of stories to cover, and only so many hours in the work day.
I don’t know if Canadian religious media can afford to report this story, at best we may see a few fluff pieces, Canadian Christian media is an insular world that is too small for transparency, tough questions and critical comment.

A couple of blogs have posted about Gordon Driver and Ron and Reynold Mainse being yanked as hosts. That’s it. Why? My sense is the show is not relevant to faith bloggers, the alleged ponzi scheme information is complicated and why post on a ministry who treats staff poorly and is in the usual rut of running behind information and attempting to micro manage what the public ‘should’ know. 
Why ask the online community to care? 
Crossroads is not a media organization which handles being in the news, or the new well at all.
Their communication skills off air leave a great deal to be desired.

Readers have pointed out Jim Cantelon’s interesting cherry picking of scripture when the board buried the announcement pre-show a couple of weeks after the hosts disappeared. Another reader pointed out the current Crossroads board CEO, Doug McKenzie also sits on Jim Cantelon’s VisionLedd board and asks if that information is open and available. People have asked if Norm McLaren’s re-Tired means he decided to leave or it was mutually agreed on.  No one at Crossroads thought it was important to take David Rutledge’s information down until a few days ago.

Canadian national media know about Gordon Driver, and I think when they chose to run with any one of the varied angles of this story, they will be a lot clearer to the public and fairer to Crossroads, than Crossroads has been to it’s employees, donors and viewers.
I have not hidden my disappointment in how this ministry/company has communicated. 
When BDBO comes up in the top of searches about a once thriving ministry being scammed, I’m not the one with the problem.  Over the next few days I hope harmed investors, concerned donors and puzzled viewers have far better resources to go to than this blog.