Duped in the 80s part 2

“When you reach the end of your rope, tie a knot in it and hang on.”quote from Franklin D. Roosevelt

Valentine’s Day has always been my favorite holiday. I enjoy the concept of being given red roses and chocolates by someone special. Decorating with red hearts, flying flags with the Valentine symbols from our bedroom window. Our dining room table cloth with red glitter and red candles placed into silver candle holders just added to the magic. Perhaps I just like the color red to brighten up our Chicago home in the dark winter months of February. Plus, our son, Nick, was born on February 14th. But, in 1991, the day that I most coveted was ruined.

I remember this day as though it just happened yesterday. I wore to work my Valentine’s Day red dress with black buttons, my hair was long and I held it back with a red heart pin. I had on black boots because it was a cold day and to keep warm I had purchased a golden shawl from TJ Max. I arrived at work around ten o’clock, my usual time. Mary, our office manager approached me, which was strange, because she usually avoided me. Mary, was Tom’s personal spy. Tom, was my father’s outside salesman, who resented me and Russ.

“Hallee,” Mary called me into her office, “I think you should see this resignation letter that we just received from Paul.” I could see a villainous look in her eye.

When I read the letter from Paul, the man Tom hired to slowly replace me, I realized that Tom, Mary and Dan, the store manager, had taken Paul out for dinner when they hired him and debased Russ and I. Nothing new, I was used to their snide looks and cool manner towards us. Paul’s letter just confirmed my feelings. Mary, stood by me as I read this letter, almost laughing with happiness, to see if they had hurt me. Because Paul’s letter included words about how he agreed with them about my inadequacy.

“Ok,” I said, as I handed her back Paul’s letter, ” Is Dan in the store?”

When I found Dan, I asked him if I should do my entire job now that Paul resigned.

“Yes, you can do it again, that is until Tom finds someone to replace Paul.”

I went back to my office and started to reconcile our books. My father, liked to pay his invoices the week that they came in. Sometimes, he paid even before we received the merchandise. As I was doing the check reconciliation, I saw a hand written check for $40.83 that had not cleared. I called the bank to place a stop on this check.

“No, Hallee, this check has cleared. It was for $295,000.00.” the bank teller told me.

“What! That can’t be right. I am coming to the bank to see this check.”

I ran across the street to the bank, and found the teller who had the check ready for me to see, and sure enough, it was for $295,000.00 with Dan’s signature.

I called the store and asked to speak with Dan. He was in shock and came right away to the bank.

“I did give Paul a few blank checks with my signature.” he told me and the President of the Bank.

I called Tom, I learned he was on the golf course. But he did call when he received my message. He told me I could handle the problem. I called my father in Florida, he told me I could handle the problem. I called Russ at the store, he told me to handle the problem, he was busy with his fire department customer. So, I handled the problem, I had the bank call the police and the police called the FBI.

In three days the FBI located Paul, and arrested him at Harlan J. Berk Ltd. coin exchange store.The total he robbed from the store in six weeks was $689,000.00 and he had changed the cash to gold coins because he felt coin can not be followed. He also purchased a $13,000.00 Rolex watch, and a golden statue of Midas, because that is who he thought he was. His plan was to take the coins and move to Argentina.

My father’s words keep swirling through my brain, ‘Watch the store everyday Hallee. Keep track of the payables. They are your responsibility.” But he really had given the responsibility to Tom and Danny, I was just the fall guy.

Yet, I was the catalyst that caused this problem. One day as I was paying the store’s invoices I noticed Dan, the store manager, was taking money for gas, lunch, and sporting events. Russ and I were given no privileges. We were paid a little more than minimum wage. I showed my father Dan’s expenses and the next thing I knew Tom informed me that with my father’s permission they hired an employee as a bookkeeper to help me check and send out the payables.

Tom, contacted our accountants. The accountants placed an ad and chose Paul. Paul, who had just been released from prison in New York, thought he had this scheme down pat. Coming to Chicago, he also placed an ad for an accountant, then he assumed the identity of the best resume, changing the contact phone number. This was a time when cellular phones were just starting to be used. Therefore, he had no problem answering the phone with the correct greeting.

Paul, was a gorgeous young man, tall, thin, tan, blonde with the longest blonde eyelashes I had ever seen. I asked myself why would an educated handsome man take such a low paying job? Then I learned he drove a dark green Jaguar. When I asked him how he could afford such an expensive car and park it in the most expense parking lot, he told me it wasn’t his car. It was his wife’s boss’s car and he was taking care of it while her boss was on vacation. He used a Montblanc pen. I love pens and I was aware of how much this pen had to cost. When I asked him about it, he didn’t blink, “My wife’s parents purchased it for me for my birthday.”

There was this little voice in the back of my head telling me to be careful, something isn’t right. I was naive and trusting even though I had just experienced my sister-in-laws embezzlement. I had learned that everything wasn’t as it seemed. Perhaps when I discovered the $40.83 forgery I was mentally prepared.

How was Paul able to commit this larceny? After I wrote the checks to pay the invoices, I gave the checks to him. He was to match the invoices to the checks and send the payments out. Except he didn’t send the payments out, he kept the checks. When Dan, gave him three signed blank checks, he realized he hit the jack pot. He went to the bank, that my father used for more than twenty years. and presented himself as the new bookkeeper and had the bank wire transfer funds to his fake business accounts. Plus, he learned how to forge my name and he wrote three more checks out to his pretend business. For a total of $689,000.00 plus.

The FBI tracked him down and contacted the Chicago Police to arrest him at Harlan J. Berk Ltd, a coin exchange company located on Clark street in Chicago. Paul was waiting for a shipment of Gold Canadian Maple leaf coins. When he went in to claim them the Chicago Police were waiting.

Now we had to find a lawyer to help us retrieve our money. Tom, called my father and told him to use his lawyer friend, but Russ said “No.”

Russ, found a lawyer for the store, but Tom convinced my father to use his friend as well. We went to court at the most dangerous court house in Chicago. We sat on old plank benches waiting to see Paul to start our case against him. Paul emerged from the side door flanked by a police guard. He actually smiled at me and waved! He looked like he had just stepped out of a business meeting. Still dressed in Armani, his hair and skin glowed. I looked like I just slept on the street! I couldn’t sleep I was so nervous about loosing the store. We had sixty employees at this time, what would happen to them?

The judge gave us permission to retrieve the gold coins, which was located in the evidence room in the basement of 26th and California. When we parked our car in the gated parking lot, we saw armed police on the roof to make sure no one escaped. We were met by our lawyer and four armed guards who escorted us to the basement. We were seated at a fifthly desk with one over head light where our lawyer counted out the coins. As I sat there I notice we were surrounded by police guards holding guns. Behind us, in cages, there were shopping carts filled with all types of guns and weapons. Horrible! We hired an armored truck to move the coins to Harlan J. Berk. We had some luck because the price of gold was up that week.

We were able to recoup about $660,000.00 less the double lawyer’s fees. I brought the Rolex watch back to the jeweler who sold it to Paul, but he would only buy it back for $8,000.00. Then I went to another jeweler and received $10,000.00. The golden statue was purchased at Harlan J. Berk, and they bought it back for full value. The dark green Jaguar was gone, we believe his boyfriend took it.

This experience took exactly one month to play out. Neither my parents, Tom, Mary nor Danny helped us. Only Russ was at my side. No one ever thanked me nor Russ for the work we did to recover the funds. Actually, Tom and Danny put a spin on it by saying my signature was easy to forge. How did they forget Dan gave Paul three signed blank checks?

Once all our venders were paid and life at the store seemed to return to what ever normal was for the store, my father realized he needed to sell the business. He put out notices with the main venders we used to ask if they would be interested in purchasing the store. All three wanted it. My father asked Russ and I to make the decision. The one we choose he rejected and took the one Tom choose. The new company let me go and gave Russ a three year contract.

At this time Russ was servicing the Chicago Fire Dept. and this was the store’s largest account. Tom, who was always looking to have Russ removed finally found his foil. Russ was buying pants and shirts from a company that the fire department wanted. However, the new company wanted this account. When they asked Russ to have a meeting with the Fire Dept. to discuss what type of items they needed. The Fire Dept. told the company they wanted to stay with the original vender. They asked Russ what he was going to do, and Russ said, “Give the customer what they want.” So they fired him.

In reality, I was glad to be done with my father’s dream. The selling of the store and the firing of Russ gave us our life back. We were able to explore new avenues. The day after he was fired, Russ applied to Oakton Community College. In time he transferred to DePaul University, where he received a Master’s degree in computer science. While working on his degree he took a student job in Information Services as a web developer to gain experience at the University. Russ, has no hubris, and in time he received a full time job. Because of this job, Tracy, our daughter and I were able to go to the University at no cost. Tracy received her degree in early education and I received a degree in Comparative Religion. With my degree I became a docent for the Chicago Architectural Foundation and the Chicago History Museum. And I was still taking care of my parents, being the manager of their properties and their buildings.

Life moved on and Russ and I were happy, until my mother had a stroke then things changed rapidly. And once again I was in search of a lawyer.