The widow of the late Charlotte businessman Rick Siskey, who the FBI has alleged operated a long-running Ponzi scheme, said in a court filing Wednesday that she plans to place $37.5 million in life insurance proceeds into an escrow account for investors and other creditors.
Siskey took his own life Dec. 28, a week after court filings gave the first public indication that he was under investigation for fraud allegations. An FBI affidavit unsealed this month alleged he was operating a Ponzi scheme and that more than 100 investors could Savoybetting be out as much as $19 million.
Diane Siskey’s court filing came in response to a petition filed last week by three investors seeking to push TSI Holdings, the fund run by Rick Siskey, into Chapter 7 bankruptcy. The petitioners have also asked the federal bankruptcy court to appoint an interim trustee who could preserve assets for the investors.
In her filing, Diane Siskey said in the past several days she has received a total of $46.93 million as the beneficiary of four life insurance policies taken out by her husband. She said she has told the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission of her intent to voluntarily place 80 percent into an escrow account to repay creditors to the extent they are not covered by other means.
Diane Siskey said in the filing that she had no involvement in TSI and had no knowledge of “any allegations of allegedly illegal activities” until December 2016 when the FBI interviewed her husband. She said she is cooperating fully with all government investigations and is willing to cooperate fully with a trustee appointed by the court.
She had told investors last month that she planned to place the “bulk” of any insurance proceeds into an escrow account for investors but hadn’t provided any details. Charles Monnett III, a Charlotte attorney representing the investors who filed the petition, said he took that action in bankruptcy court because he couldn’t get the assurances he wanted from Diane Siskey’s attorneys about how assets would be preserved.
“I think it’s a good first step,” Monnett said of Tuesday’s filing. “I think 100 percent of available assets need to be held by an independent party until we’ve determined how much is owed to all creditors. I would be concerned about any monies being dissipated until we’re sure that everyone who has lost their money is repaid in full.”
A hearing is scheduled for Thursday in bankruptcy court in the case.
In Charlotte since 1985, Rick Siskey was known as the founder of financial services firm Wall Street Capitol, with which he was no longer associated at the time of his death. He also invested in start-up companies and real estate. In 1995, the Siskey YMCA in Matthews was named for the family because of a donation the couple made.
Rick Rothacker: 704-358-5170, @rickrothacker
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