Another 'Sovereign Citizen' Learns Fake Claims Can Lead to Real Arrest
Declaring yourself a ââ exempt from government authority and tax obligations must be something of a rush â until that government decides to slap handcuffs on you.
Consider the case of Marshall Edwin Home, 81, a self-described multibillionaire and dispenser of highly questionable financial advice who on March 16 filed to run for mayor of Tucson, Ariz. Evidently relying on âsovereignâ rationale, Home â on the very same day he declared himself a mayoral candidate â filed documents in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court seeking to place the United States itself into bankruptcy, asserting that he personally had a $3 billion claim against the federal government. (Home withdrew from the mayoral race in June.)
The government doesnât look too kindly on phony bankruptcy claims. On July 1, Home was arrested and charged with two counts of making false claims in bankruptcy. Each count carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
According to the governmentâs press release, Home operated the âIndividual Rights Party; Mortgage Rescue Service,â through which he would charge clients $500 to âmake the foreclosure process stop.â The government alleges that on his website Home told clients that their property âwould become part of his âlarger overall bankruptcy liquidation.ââ That means, according to the federal complaint, that âHome filed or caused to be filed 173 false claims against the United States ⌠total[ing] over $2.5 trillion.â The criminal complaint is linked to two of those claims, one for $2.5 billion and another for $50 million.
âThe anti-government paranoia of so-called âsovereign citizensâ becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy when they use their false claims and fraudulent practices to rip off others,â U.S. Attorney Dennis K. Burke said in the press release.
Sovereign citizens generally believe they can remove themselves from the jurisdiction of state and federal government, so that they donât need to pay taxes or use any form of government documentation, such as driverâs licenses or automobile license tags. Some sovereigns believe they can discharge debts by accessing secret accounts supposedly created by the government in their names at birth â accounts that, of course, donât exist.
Among Homeâs clients was John Apostolou, a Greek immigrant who rose from cook to owner of , a popular Chicago-based chain of 45 restaurants nationwide. During the course of 23 years, Apostolouâs various businesses amassed $45.5 million in bank debts and faced bankruptcy. Apostolou turned to Home for help and, apparently at Homeâs direction, filed a series of legally bogus affidavits in court. One asserted that Apostolou and his wife, who co-owns the business, donât recognize U.S. currency and are free of any legal constraints. Another sought to terminate Apostolouâs bankruptcy by alleging bank fraud and other misdeeds. In May, a clearly annoyed bankruptcy judge seized control of the restaurant chain from the Apostolous, placed it in the hands of a trustee, and barred Apostolou from setting foot in the establishment. Proceedings are still under way.
Though Apostolou claimed he didnât read the documents Home directed him to file, as of mid-June he still believed Home could deliver him from financial ruin, even promising to give Home a share of the business should he regain control. Home filed papers with the bankruptcy court claiming to have a $150 million lien against Giordanoâs â apparently part of a scheme to get the pizza chain back for the Apostolous. âMy claim is solid, legal and secured,â Home told the Chicago Tribune at the time. âI will be in control of the business. You can count on it.â
About all Home can count on right now is that he is in a world of trouble.
With more than a dollop of irony, Home told the Tucson Weekly that he had entered the mayoral race because of âall the lies and the deceits. How about all the thievery? There doesnât seem to be any integrity in the government.â
One might wonder about Homeâs claim of being a multibillionaire. Could that merely be based on his $3 billion claim against the U.S. government? He wouldnât go into details when pressed by the Tucson Weekly.
âThatâs private,â Home told the newspaper. âIâve been described as a multi-billionaire. Weâll leave it at that. Why? You canât accept it at that?â