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Inset: Brett Detamore (West University Place Police Department). Background: Dodge Ram TRX Detamore allegedly burned (Lawsuit).
A Texas developer who admitted to taking millions from customers successful bid to money trips to the Super Bowl and World Series — and past allegedly faked his ain disappearance successful bid to debar work — volition walk the adjacent fewer years down bars.
Brett Michael Detamore, 40, pleaded blameworthy past twelvemonth to ligament fraud and connected Wednesday was sentenced to 51 months — 4 years and 3 months — successful prison. He besides indispensable wage $2.3 cardinal successful restitution to much than 10 victims, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas.
Prosecutors said Detamore, proprietor of Detamore Development LLC, fraudulently obtained astatine slightest $1.5 cardinal for his idiosyncratic usage that was intended for lodging projects. He submitted mendacious invoices to banks for operation loans for single-family residences helium was contracted to build. He past utilized the funds for his idiosyncratic benefit, prosecutors said.
According to the indictment, Detamore successful October 2022 entered into a declaration with a lawsuit to physique a single-family location connected Nottingham Street successful Houston. But Detamore ne'er built the location and alternatively pocketed the funds.
Several of the victims spoke astir the fiscal ruin Detamore caused them. According to a courtroom study by section NBC affiliate KPRC, unfortunate Lori Williamson told the tribunal however she was hesitant astir Detamore gathering her imagination location due to the fact that they were friends.
Detamore responded to her concern: “Who amended to spot than your bully friends,” Williamson reportedly testified.
KPRC besides spoke with different unfortunate aft the proceeding who worked for, and was friends with, Detamore.
“I mean, we had to fig retired however to financially travel retired of the spread that helium near us,” Sergio Moreno told the TV station. “Even though we were fixed a tiny magnitude backmost … it’s inactive not making up what we lost.”
As Law&Crime previously reported, Detamore’s woman reported him missing successful June 2023. According to the West University Place Police Department, Detamore’s yellowish Dodge Ram TRX was recovered burned astatine Bear Creek Pioneers Park hours aft the then-missing idiosyncratic near his home.
Six days aft the reported disappearance, Detamore was recovered astatine a autobus halt successful San Antonio, leading cops to announce helium had been “reunited with his family.”
Authorities aboriginal addressed the bizarre circumstances and lingering questions from the nationalist astir what took place. As portion of efforts to crook up “valuable clues” and lick the “puzzle” of Detamore’s abrupt vanishing, constabulary said that they subpoenaed fiscal and telephone records, and besides interviewed a witnesser who claimed to spot a antheral walking distant from Detamore’s burned pickup truck.
Investigators came to the conclusion that it “appear[ed] that Brett’s disappearance was pre-planned.”
“While we recognize the community’s tendency for much information, we indispensable workout caution owed to the beingness of imaginable suspects, the idiosyncratic who left, oregon imaginable co-conspirators who mightiness beryllium monitoring our updates,” cops said astatine the time. “Our precedence is to support the integrity of the probe and guarantee that nary imaginable grounds oregon leads are compromised.”
A $1 cardinal lawsuit filed by Zaffer Syed connected Oct. 4, 2023, successful Harris County seeks to capable successful immoderate of the gaps.
Syed alleges successful the breach of contract, fraud, unjust enrichment, theft, and negligent misrepresentation suit against Detamore and Detamore Development, LLC, that the suspect utilized concern wealth meant to money location constructions to money his ain “lavish lifestyle,” including tickets to “major sporting events” similar the Super Bowl and World Series.
“Brett Detamore’s lavish manner included attending large sporting events, including the Super Bowl, World Series games, conscionable and greets with athletes, and different high-dollar events,” the suit alleged. “Brett Detamore jet-setted astir and stayed successful luxurious hotels and resorts. Additionally, helium bought and drove an costly Dodge Ram TRX truck, Cadillac Escalade, and had a 2nd location successful Galveston worthy implicit cardinal dollars.”
The plaintiff said Detamore adjacent had the vanity sheet “HIDEIT” connected his Cadillac Escalade, which the suit interpreted arsenic the suspect flaunting “his quality to defraud guiltless victims.”
Syed asserted that the “disappearance” and the intentional motortruck occurrence was a last-ditch effort by Detamore to wantonness his “responsibility for constructing the Homes.”
“In reality, Defendant misappropriated and stole overmuch of the currency that was expected to beryllium utilized to implicit the operation of the Homes,” the suit said. “Defendants carried retired the strategy by falsifying and creating fake invoices and pictures that were submitted to the financing slope to enactment interim draws.”
The suit remains ongoing and has a proceedings day acceptable for October, immoderate 2 years aft it was filed. He’s besides facing different lawsuits that are ongoing.
Matt Naham contributed to this report
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