WHAT A HEEL!: Entrepreneur Was Full Of It
Even the slickest con man can’t turn sh** into money, but Orange County (CA) entrepreneur W. Patrick Moriarty, 75, sold investors on what he said was cutting-edge technology to extract methane gas from cow manure and convert it into electricity. But Moriarty and his business partner, Wayne Stephens, left out the part about how they did not have licensed technology or equipment for this purpose, not to mention permits - or even a steady supply of the smelly stuff. Twenty gullible investors who coughed up $10 million in seed money to get Chino Organic Power Inc. off the ground. Moriarty also left out that prison stint in the ‘80s for mail fraud. The Los Angeles Times reports that Stephens filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection in 2005, and several angry investors have filed lawsuits alleging fraud by Moriarty and Stephens.
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