In December 2023, four-time World Series of Poker Circuit winner George Paul Janssen was discovered together with his arms zip-tied and a bloody face alongside a rural street in Meade Township, Michigan.
Janssen mentioned he was kidnapped by a Mexican cartel after the gang tried to extort him for 2 years.
Some within the Wolverine State now imagine your complete kidnapping might have been a ruse to rip-off 20 banks out of $3.2 million. According to reviews, he allegedly used pretend paperwork to use for loans and is now accused of fraud after an investigation by the FBI.
Janssen was arrested last week on fraud fees and the weird story made worldwide information.
The part-time poker participant has nearly $550,000 in match winnings. In 2022, he gained three WSOP Circuit on-line occasions. He added a fourth ring from one other on-line poker collection in 2023.
Janssen disappeared in November 2023. A month later, he was discovered on the street. The incident got here after he allegedly falsified enterprise paperwork and misplaced his license to promote automobiles.
“This was not the first time they found Janssen falsifying business documents and, on October 30, 2023, Janssen lost his license to sell cars in Michigan for a five-year period,” a federal grievance notes.
The Michigan Department of State Office of Investigative Services discovered “discrepancies in his sales and inventory.” They discovered he listed “the same fictitious vehicles in multiple loan applications.”
As a end result, his auto dealership was closed.
Longtime buddy Earl McKee mentioned Janssen “used their friendship to ask [him] to take out multiple vehicle loans,” in keeping with The Independent. McKee later altered authorities of the suspicious transactions.
“There’s been a lot of collateral damage due to what George has done,” he informed the newspaper. “I have a family, I have a career. I don’t need his problems, too. This was a shock to everyone.”
McKee additionally added that he wasn’t certain if the kidnapping was actual or not. During the alleged kidnapping, a household buddy discovered his automobile with some money, together with a $50 invoice, situated on the floorboard, in keeping with reviews.
A member of the family informed native information shops on the time that two or three folks kidnapped Janssen and transported him to the Toledo space, the place he was saved in opposition to his will for 35 days in a basement.
“From what we gathered, he was being brought up here to recover some money that was hidden to give to these two assailants,” Huron County Sheriff Kelly Hanson mentioned.
Janssen withdrew giant quantities of money from his financial institution accounts earlier than the incident, prosecutors be aware. Federal authorities haven’t commented on whether or not they imagine your complete story is actual. Janssen now faces as much as 30 years in jail and a $1 million nice.
