[Jon]

Just wanted to bring everyone up to date on some very interesting developments in the Streetbeasts lawsuit(s), and start a new fundraiser to cover new legal fees. For background, you can check out the original lawsuit post. In a nutshell, 3 frivolous lawsuits have been filed against me by Streetbeasts and its owner, George G. Levin, in an attempt to push for takedown on an article that reveals the connection between Streetbeasts and Classic Motor Carriages, a kit car company that pleaded guilty to federal wire fraud charges. This is a pathetic attempt to bully us out of our First Amendment rights. We haven't budged an inch, and the article has stayed online, largely thanks to donations to our legal fund from Hotrodders.com members.

I saw a thread in which some people had already noticed that George G. Levin, the owner of Streetbeasts and Classic Motor Carriages, has had his name in the press lately, in association with an alleged $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme in Florida. Scott Rothstein, a Florida lawyer, was arrested last week on various federal fraud and racketeering charges, including violating the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), often used to prosecute the Mafia and others involved in organized crime. Federal agents have been busy seizing Rothstein's assets: mansions, boats, and a car collection that included Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Rolls-Royces, and a couple of Bugatti Veyrons.

Press reports indicate that Streetbeasts's owner, George G. Levin, through various investment companies, allegedly lured people into putting hundreds of millions of dollars into Rothstein's fraudulent investment deals. According to the Miami Herald, Levin has been named as a defendant in a lawsuit that alleges he was a co-conspirator of Rothstein. The head of the FBI's South Florida Division has stated that "The investigation is far from over", and the FBI is now investigating Rothstein's accomplices. Levin has hired a PR firm, and, through his spokesman, maintains that he himself was a victim of the scheme. Here's a photo of Levin and Rothstein together.

The Florida press has picked up on the lawsuits against me, and published links to the wiki article and this forum. See this article for details: Rothstein Feeder George Levin's Ugly Past. More details are in this article: Unveiling Rothstein's Top Investor, and in the Wikipedia article on Scott Rothstein.

How does this affect the lawsuits filed by Streetbeasts and George G. Levin over the wiki article? I don't know, and we might not know for a long time, as the case progresses. Nevertheless, we still need to raise more money to pay for legal fees. So, I'm asking that everyone please take a moment and think of what this website is worth to you. Or, better yet, think about what it's worth to you to be able to speak freely about any company in this industry. Then, consider donating one-tenth, one-twentieth, or one-hundredth of that amount to the legal fund. If everyone who frequented this website did that, then we would have plenty of money for costs and attorney's fees. See this post for more details on donating via PayPal, mail, or by auctioning off a spare part you don't need.

You'll notice a new tachometer fundraising graphic at the top of forum pages to kick off a new fundraising drive to cover legal fees (thanks Doodler and Only Racing for their donations of artwork). If we can push that tach to 10,000 rpm, and raise $10,000, we should be well-equipped to fight this next round, beat back Streetbeasts and George G. Levin, and keep the article online.

Thanks.

[Only Racing]

This is good news for Hotrodders Jon and bad for Mr Levin, a Rico is nothing to sneeze at. Surely the cases you are involved with will be looked at with open eyes now as they will not want anymore bad PR.

[454 Rattler]

Maybe this thread should be kept near the top of the page.
This is very interesting guys. It's worth the time it takes to read it.


454 RATTLER

[MARTINSR]

That is wild, absolutly wild.

Brian

[BarryK]

It is wild but good reading.

You would have thought with that kind of money he would have bought a better looking wife.

[cobalt327]

Originally Posted by BarryK

It is wild but good reading.

You would have thought with that kind of money he would have bought a better looking wife.

lol Don't confuse wives w/whores and hookers. I'm betting his concubines look different- although I'd take a plain-looking good woman over forty beautiful whores, any day.

[BarryK]

Cobalt, my bad!

Looked like he had more money then Tiger Woods and I should have never ***-u-me his tastes were as good.

When he goes to jail at least his wife will have enough money to buy the cabana boy of her choice, I might send her a picture of me but with a nose that has been broke over 300 times, jaw twice and ribs held together with Duramix and riding in a wheel chair, she may not want to push me around, LOL, she could do better.

Jon, check is in mail today and thank you.

[rainmanracing]

Howdy Jon,

Longtime reader of these related threads, first time donating.

Through outside sources, news etc., it seems that the main issue customers have with enterprises associated with George G. Levin is the perception that, "you don't get what you pay for". Perception is people's "reality".

This includes (but may not be limited to) CMC, Streetbeasts, Banyon Income Fund, Innovative Street Machines etc.

Anecdotal evidence implies that, in fact, this perception IS reality. The propensity for occurance increases...well, increasingly happens ESPECIALLY during a "Bear" market. Look in the comments section of this link:
http://techdirt.com/articles/20081031/0309292699.shtml

Here's what 2 Canadian Street Beasts Customers had to say...
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Re: StreetBeast
by Bruce Houghton
I have a 67 year old broken heart. December 5,2007, I order the 34 Ford Coup($5,000.00 down) and waited. Many phone calls with many excuses for answers, I finally get the letter. Feburary 24, 2008, Bob Southern, StreetBeasts.
"Due to the current economy, we are down sizing our 50,000 square foot factory. If you don't pay the remaining $10,475.87 within 90 days from the date of this letter..."
WELL, you can guess the rest. Bye bye $5,000.00.
Sad, sad day.
Bruce Houghton
Markham Ontario,
Canada

Mar 13th, 2009 @ 11:51amRe: Re: StreetBeast
by neil saulnier
Hi.I also just got the same letter about paying the balance for my car. Deposit paid in July /August 08 recieved letter March 13,2009. Pay balance $12,445.00 within 90 days or loose it. Neil Saulnier Nova Scotia Canada


%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Well, perhaps there is more than just "anecdotal" evidence

I wish I could find a working link to the South Florida commercial building transaction (again associated with George G. Levin's real estate arm) that was allegedly sold with a substantial lien against it to an unsuspecting buyer....

[rainmanracing]

There seems to be a concerted effort to silence free speech as it pertains to GGL both inside & outside of your wonderful website.

I found another interesting "error" in the content of the wikipedia link you present at the top of this post (Rothstein).

...."Streetbeasts" is misspelled. I'd argue deliberately. Hard to use a search engine to find something that's misspelled....

%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

"Athough a convicted felon, GGL hounded Rado's estate for the payment of $80,000 in attorney's fees.

The state of Florida filed suit against the company alleging deceptive business practices and civil theft. A special assistant attorney general, Herbert Stettin lead the investigation. Stettin is now the trustee overseeing the Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler bankruptcy case.

Levin continues to sell kit cars under a different company name, treetBeasts.[72]"

[Centerline]

Originally Posted by rainmanracing

.........I found another interesting "error" in the content of the wikipedia link you present at the top of this post (Rothstein).

...."Streetbeasts" is misspelled. I'd argue deliberately. Hard to use a search engine to find something that's misspelled....

.........Levin continues to sell kit cars under a different company name, treetBeasts.[72]"

I just fixed that. The link was correct but the spelling was wrong. It now says Streetbeast.

[rainmanracing]

Cool, all the links worked wonderfully, it was just "interesting" how Streetbeasts was misspelled "treatbeasts"....and, knowing how these wiki's are edited, "why". lol

Jon noticed the misspelling too.

Of course, conspiracy theorists abound--and after reading the 82 page thread on Streatbeasts, there's plenty of justification for paranoia on people, their posts and their motives! I also noticed there was no wiki on George G. Levin nor on Streetbeasts on wikipedia. That would make the improperly spelled "Streetbeasts" unable to be searched at wikipedia.com.

[Jon]

Glad to see that the "spelling" error was corrected . Fortunately, our wiki article is #1 in Google for searches for "George G. Levin".

We are up from $638 in donations to $1,183. Thanks new donors

New stuff mentioning George G. Levin:

--Levin lawyers up
--Levin memo on hiring lawyer (interesting comments on that one)

According to the South Florida Business Journal, a "creditors committee" was formed, of entities owed money in the alleged Ponzi -- but the committee is missing an important name. From the article:

Originally Posted by South Florida Business Journal

A formal committee of creditors has been named in the bankruptcy case of Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler law firm – and it’s missing an important name: the largest creditor, the Banyon investments funds.

A creditors committee is usually made up of the largest entities owed money in a bankruptcy. The committee makes decisions about investigating the bankrupt company and about distribution of recovered funds.

Altogether, the Banyon funds reported losses of $775 million in the RRA bankruptcy, but the funds and their manager George G. Levin aren’t named on the creditors committee.

Also, the Fort Lauderdale police chief is feeling some heat over an "interesting" crash involving a Bentley.

I'm working on getting some more court documents from lawsuits involving George G. Levin. They should also be "interesting".

[Ratdoggy]

Jeez what a trainwreck.

[Jon]

Thanks all new donors! We've already doubled the amount of funds raised when I started this thread -- we're up to $1,308 .

The South Florida Business Journal is reporting that another lawsuit has been filed against Levin and his investment company: Lawsuit: Levin Guaranteed Rothstein Funds. Also, see this article in the Sun-Sentinel: New Lawsuit Filed Against Banyon Feeder

Accompanying the articles is a very interesting document. It's a Powerpoint presentation -- they're saying it's part of the sales pitch of Levin's Banyon companies, which, according to their article, put $775 million of investor money into Rothstein's alleged Ponzi scheme. The presentation lists various properties and companies as George G. Levin's "holdings", including a couple of hotels, a yacht company, and Street Beasts. The Powerpoint presentation, marked "confidential and proprietary" is available in PDF format here: Powerpoint presentation.

[66 Restomod]

Hope he gets everything he deserves.
I lost a deposit I made to Classic Motor Carriages for a Speedster kit. They took the money and filed bankruptcy a few months later.
Bad people out there...