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GRAND RAPIDS, MI — As he gave generously to Resurrection Life Church in Grandville, David McQueen was fond of saying he was “blessed to be a blessing.”
Trouble is, McQueen, the mastermind of a $46 million Ponzi scheme, donated others’ money. By the government’s tally, it was $300,000.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Borgula sought its return as part of an ongoing effort to reimburse victims, in a small way, with some of the money taken by McQueen.
The church rejected the request.
“Resurrection Life Church had no knowledge of the source of the funds, nor was it in any way complicit with this donor,” The Rev. Bernard Blauwkamp, secretary of the church’s Board of Elders, wrote in a letter obtained by MLive and The Grand Rapids Press.
The letter, addressed to Borgula, said elders “have read and considered the detailed information contained in your email of November 26, 2014, regarding the tithe monies and gifts given to the church by Mr. David McQueen. We were saddened to hear the news of his wrongdoing, and pray that God will work in his heart and life and bring repentance.
“We have prayerfully considered your request that the Church return all or part of this donor’s gifts and tithe monies, and must respectfully decline to do so.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office, the FBI and IRS are working to find assets that can be used to pay restitution. The government has already seized cash, boats, vehicles and a Florida condominium, which represent a “small fraction of the total loss,” the government said in a letter to the victims.
The federal agencies have asked third parties to voluntarily contribute to pay restitution.
“For instance, the government has asked that Resurrection Life Church, which received over $300,000 in stolen funds from David McQueen in the form of donations, return the money to pay restitution,” a victim-witness assistant wrote in a notice to victims.
Blauwkamp said inclusion of the church’s letter in the notice was “grossly inappropriate” and unfairly singled out the church in an attempt to make it look bad.
“It’s unprofessional to include that letter, like we’re to blame,” he said. “The guy to blame is in jail.”
The church has received several calls from victims who received the emailed information via a victims’ services e-mail.
Blauwkamp said the church, which opened its books to the FBI, had only minor disagreement with the figures provided by the government. He said that McQueen’s donations came in a three-year period, beginning in 2006, when the church was involved in a building project.
“That was six years ago. You don’t have money laying around that long. We feel for the victims. It’s not like we have a pile (of money) to be distributed,” he said.
The church spends its money as it comes in, providing families with food and help with utilities, aiding various agencies in the area and furthering “our Church’s mission to help spread the gospel of Jesus Christ locally, nationally and around the world,” Blauwkamp said.
Noting McQueen was ordered to pay $32 million in restitution, Blauwkamp wondered if others who benefited – from the dealership that sold McQueen a Land Rover, to the IRS for collecting taxes on his ill-gotten gains – would also be asked to ante up.
“What about the $31,700,000? Do they have a list of the other people that did business with him?”
Blauwkamp said the federal government “painted us in a bad light, and I believe unjustly.”
McQueen joined the church in 1997 but by 1999 was no longer active. Blauwkamp didn’t know him, but that’s not unusual in a megachurch.
McQueen said in a biography he was “blessed to be a blessing” — before anyone realized he was actually robbing investors. He operated perhaps the state’s largest Ponzi scheme.
Borgula has called him “one of the worst kinds of financial predators. He’s so arrogant he thinks he’s infallible.”
McQueen, 44, was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison. He is in a medium-security facility in Oxford, Wisc.
Borgula declined to comment Friday.
U.S. Attorney Patrick Miles Jr., in a statement to MLive and The Press, said: “The U.S. Attorney’s Office must try to return assets stolen from innocent investors as restitution. We requested that various third parties voluntarily reimburse or return funds from David McQueen. We will continue our objective to keep victims apprised of our efforts.”
Earlier, Borgula said McQueen left over 800 victims. People mortgaged houses, cashed in IRAs and handed over retirement savings.
McQueen had enlisted legitimate insurance salesmen to invest in his company. Many victims trusted their insurance agents.
McQueen was convicted in a six-week jury trial of multiple mail-fraud and money-laundering charges.
Several others were convicted, too. Trent Francke, who, like McQueen, lived in Byron Center, held the second-highest position in the organization. He took a plea deal and is serving seven years in prison after testifying against McQueen.
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