Jackson Jambalaya

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Bank of Forest, First State Bank, Holmes County Bank, State Bank, First Security Bank, M&F, and Omnibank served James Lee III with a notice of deposition yesterday. JJ has learned Mr. Lee was the former sales manager at Gulf States Directory. Chris and Charles Evans operated the company after inheriting it from their father upon his death. The Evans brothers operated the law practice, directory business, and the LLC's that are the subject of the Evans fraud case out of the same small office on Office Park Drive in Jackson. It will be interesting to see if Mr. Lee takes the fifth amendment during deposition or if any other party moves to stop the deposition. Copy of notice

Synopsis of Evans case (This feature will be included with future posts on Evans case): Charles Evans, Jr. was an attorney approved by Mississippi Valley Title Insurance Company to provide title certificates to MVT and lenders showing a borrower had clear title to property. MVT filed a lawsuit in September accusing his brother of using over 30 LLC's to obtain fraudulent loans from over 30 banks in Mississippi. Chris Evans would allegedly use one company to purchase a large tract of prime commercial real estate in Madison and Desoto Counties. Another company owned by Evans would obtain a commercial real estate mortgage on a smaller section of the tract yet that borrowing company never obtained a deed showing ownership of the land from the other company. Thus the smaller tract was actually non-existed as the larger tract was never actually subdivided. Charles would allegedly provide a title certificate however showing the borrowing company owned the land even though it didn't.

Over 80 loans for nearly $50 million were issued by Mississippi banks to companies owned by Chris Evans for lands those companies either did not own. MVT has testified federal authorities are currently investigating the case. Chris Evans filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy on October 26, which stopped the Mississippi Valley Title's lawsuit against him as federal bankruptcy law stays most state civil court proceedings once a bankruptcy petition is filed. Mississippi Valley Title testified 65 title insurance claims for approximately $41 million have been filed by banks affected by the Evans case.