John Walling Heirs Trust

TYPE JOHN WALLING IN YOUR BROWSER AND GET THE LOWDOWN.

THIS IS A SCAM.

JackieJack

Duncanville, TX

http://lubbockonline.com/news/041297/pair.htm

Pair sentenced in heroin case
Woman sentenced for check fraud

By GRAHAM UNDERWOOD
Avalanche-Journal

A federal judge handed life and 30-year prison sentences Friday to two of three remaining defendants in a case involving the nation's largest seizure of Southwest Asian heroin.

''I'm 60 years old,'' Aziz Ghanbari told U.S. District Judge Sam Cummings before receiving three concurrent life terms.''If you think I'm going to have the age of a prophet, like Jesus Christ, assess as much years as you have in mind.''

Prosecutors identified the Iranian citizen, who spoke through an Azerbaijani interpreter, as a leader of an operation that plotted to distribute a 98-kilogram heroin cache shipped to Lubbock in the tank of a water softening system. Defense attorney Floyd Holder denied that Ghanbari was a leader and said he was only acting as a broker.

''I'd like to tell the court that this is not just, that's all,'' said 37-year-old Hamid Reza Sayadi-Takhtehkar through a Farsi interpreter.''I could not bring my witnesses to testify. That's all.''

In his October 1996 trial, Sayadi-Takhtehkar testified that he was coerced into participating in the smuggling operation.

Defense attorney Chuck Lanehart re-emphasized that argument Friday, calling his Iranian-born client ''simply a poor carpet dealer in Vienna, Austria, enticed into this deal by the U.S. government.''

Sayadi-Takhtehkar received three 365-month prison sentences - more than 30 years each - and a fourth term for 10 years. All sentences are to be served simultaneously.

Hakki Aksoy, a Turkish native with Kurdish revolutionary ties labeled by prosecutors as the person who helped bankroll the deal, still is awaiting sentencing.

Also Friday, Cummings sentenced 31-year-old Heather M. Altshuler to almost six years in prison for her role in passing checks from a nonexistent bank. The former Denver travel agent, who has been outspoken against governmental authority in earlier proceedings, declined to speak before sentence was passed.

She received 20 five-year terms and one 71-month sentence. All sentences are to be served simultaneously. Cummings also ordered Altshuler to pay $6,666 in restitution to a Minneapolis, Minn., brokerage that cashed one of the bogus checks from Central Dominion Trust.

Authorities later determined that the bank consisted of a fax machine and a Snyder post office box.

Two Snyder brothers, Johonnas and Arlie Eicke, were convicted and sentenced in connection with the fraud.

JackieJack

Duncanville, TX

http://www.avalanchejournal.com/news/112296/t...

Third defendant in check writing scam goes to court

By GRAHAM UNDERWOOD
Avalanche-Journal

Trial began Thursday for the third defendant in a scam that used checks totaling billions of dollars from a nonexistent bank.

Heather M. Altshuler, 31, faces several fraud charges in the scheme for which two Snyder brothers, Arlie and Johonnas Eicke, already are serving federal sentences. The former Denver travel agent was extradited to Lubbock from London earlier this year.

Evidence in the first trial day included testimony from a Federal Reserve Bank official who read aloud a list of checks from Central Dominion Trust and said the bank did not have an account at the institution. Of the checks listed, three were signed by Altshuler.

A former employee of a Minneapolis, Minn.-based financial brokerage firm also testified about a customer who cashed a Central Dominion check to open a $30,000 money market account and obtain $20,000 to pay medical bills. A week later, it was learned that the bank did not exist and the firm could not recover the money.

FBI agent James Mahoney of Pueblo, Colo., testified that his office received 10 Central Dominion cashier's checks for $10 million each. Central Dominion creditors soon began calling the agent saying Johonnas Eicke had directed them there for payment.

"Shortly after I received these checks, I got calls from people all over the country,'' Mahoney said. "They asked me if this assignment of funds was real and if I really had funds in an account which I could pay them.''

Documents directing Central Dominion check holders to contact the FBI and U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno were signed by Johonnas Eicke and Altshuler, according to Mahoney.

A record keeper for Victoria's Secret, a mail order apparel firm in Columbus, Ohio, also testified that in October 1993 Johonnas Eicke tried to order more than $1,300 worth of lingerie for Altshuler with a Central Dominion check. The order was canceled the next week when the bank was found to be invalid.

At the time of the Eicke brothers' 1994 arrest, federal agents and prosecutors said the bank was actually no more than a fax machine and a Snyder post office box.

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Page 1
IN THE TWELFTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT
CHANCERY COURT OF MARION COUNTY, TENNESSEE
CASE #7086
MARVIN SISSON, FRANK DAVIS, JACQUIE DONDALL, HARRY SMITH AND ALBERT BENSON AS THE JOHN WALLING HEIRS COORDINATING, ETC., Plaintiffs, VS BEATRICE THEDFORD, Defendant,
ANSWER AND COUNTER COMPLAINT
Comes now, though undersigned counsel, BEATRICE THEDFORD (hereinafter referred to as “Defendant”) who sets for the following affirmative defenses:
1. The Complaint as to Defendant BEATRICE THEDFORD, fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted in that Defendant was not in possession of the requested information, nor was she responsible for the financial status of either the John Walling Heirs Coordinating Committee (JWHCC) or the John Walling Heirs Trust (JWHT) during the relevant time periods.
2. The Complaint fails to name indispensable parties pursuant to Rule 19.01 of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure. Defendant, Beatrice Thedford, does not have access to or possession of the accounts necessary in this matter. Further, there are several persons who have access to or possession of the numerous documents and facts necessary for an adequate resolution in this matter, to such extent that this matter cannot be accurately or adequately resolved until said parties are joined in this matter. Namely, other members of both the JWHCC and the JWHT are responsible for the actions of either or both of the organizations and their respective financial dealings.
3. Plaintiffs are estopped from bringing the current action in that they have committed unlawful acts against defendant, Beatrice Thedford and against the JWHCC and the JWHT. Further, Plaintiff, Marvin Sisson, has begun his action to discredit the lawful leaders of the organization so that he might obtain financial gain from the JWHCC, the JWHT and each organizations’ respective members. Further, Mr. Sisson has previously committed unlawful acts against the JWHCC and the JWHT by intentionally and unlawfully taking funds from members of said organization.
4. Plaintiffs are estopped from bringing the current action in that they have committed fraud against the JWHCC and the JWHT. Namely, Marvin Sisson entered into this suit intentionally and maliciously so that he could obtain undeserved monetary benefit from the JWHCC and JWHT.
AND NOW, in response to the specific allegations of the Plaintiffs, Defendant, BEATRICE THEDFORD would answer as follows:
1. Denied. Plaintiffs have neither the authority nor the consent of the members of the JWHCC or the JWHT to take any actions on behalf of either of the respective organizations.
2. Denied.
3. Denied.
4. Denied.
5. Denied. Defendant has returned all documents and property in her possession at the time of the filing of the petition.
6. Denied.
7. Defendant admits the allegations of Paragraph VII of Plaintiff’s complaint in that she has been involved with two lawsuits regarding the JWHCC in Oklahoma. Defendant denies the remaining allegations of Paragraph VII of Plaintiffs’ complaints and demands strict proof thereof,
Continued on Page 2.

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Page 2

IN THE TWELFTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT
CHANCERY COURT OF MARION COUNTY, TENNESSEE

CASE #7086

WHEREFORE DEFENDANT PRAYS:

1. That judgment be granted for defendant against Plaintiffs on all claims.

2. That Defendant be awarded costs and attorney fees in this matter.

3. For general relief.

And not, COMES BEATRICE THEDFORD, as Counter-Plaintiff in this matter, and avers:

1. Marvin Sisson, Frank Davis, Jacquie Dowdall, Harry Smith, and Albert Benson, as the John Walling Heirs Coordinating Committee, hereinafter referred to individually by name or collectively as CounterDefendants, have unlawfully and without authorization gained access to confidential records. Further, Counter-Defendants have used such information to the detriment of Counter-Plaintiff, Beatrice Thedford.

2. Counter-Plaintiff avers that any actions taken in September 2005 by Counter-Defendants were done without authorization. Said actions have caused harm to the Counter-Plaintiff in that it has caused diminished standing and credibility for Counter-Plaintiff in the eyes of the membership of the JWHCC and the JWHT.

3. Counter-Plaintiff further avers that Counter-Defendants have undermined the lawful actions of Counter-Plaintiff and the JWHT and jeopardized years of hard work in that Counter-Defendants’ actions have seriously impaired and undermined the JWHCC and the JWHT to the extent the Trust’s current status is in jeopardy due to membership withdrawal or non-renewal.

NOTE: It apears that 4 is missing.

5. Counter-Defendants’ actions are a blatant attempt to reap economic benefits from the efforts of Counter-Plaintiff, the JWHCC and the JWHT.

6. Counter-Defendants have brought the underlying action in bad faith and without the proper authority. Specifically, Marvin Scission seeks an economic windfall from said lawsuit and from the discrediting of Counter-Plaintiff.

7. Counter-Defendants, namely Marvin Sisson, have used unlawfully gained access to confidential records for their own person gain, to the detriment of Counter-Plaintiff, the JWHCC and the JWHT.

8. Further, Mr. Sisson was previously employed the JWHCC. Mr. Sisson’s employment with the JWHCC was terminated due to a good fait belief that he had embezzled and/or stolen funds and property from t the JWHCC and its members.

9. Counter-Defendants actions have defamed Counter-Plaintiff and have cast Counter-Plaintiff in a poor light to the members of the JWHCC, the JWHT and the public in general.

10. Counter-Plaintiff seeks damages in the amount of $1,000,000.00 for said defamation, invasion of privacy, and other related damages to Counter-Plaintiff, Beatrice Thedford.

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Page 1

IN THE TWELFTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT
CHANCERY COURT OF MARION COUNTY, TENNESSEE

CASE #7086

MARVIN SISSON, FRANK DAVIS, JACQUIE DONDALL, HARRY SMITH AND ALBERT BENSON AS THE JOHN WALLING HEIRS COORDINATING, ETC., Plaintiffs, VS BEATRICE THEDFORD, Defendant,

ANSWER AND COUNTER COMPLAINT

Comes now, though undersigned counsel, BEATRICE THEDFORD (hereinafter referred to as “Defendant”) who sets for the following affirmative defenses:

1. The Complaint as to Defendant BEATRICE THEDFORD, fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted in that Defendant was not in possession of the requested information, nor was she responsible for the financial status of either the John Walling Heirs Coordinating Committee (JWHCC) or the John Walling Heirs Trust (JWHT) during the relevant time periods.

2. The Complaint fails to name indispensable parties pursuant to Rule 19.01 of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure. Defendant, Beatrice Thedford, does not have access to or possession of the accounts necessary in this matter. Further, there are several persons who have access to or possession of the numerous documents and facts necessary for an adequate resolution in this matter, to such extent that this matter cannot be accurately or adequately resolved until said parties are joined in this matter. Namely, other members of both the JWHCC and the JWHT are responsible for the actions of either or both of the organizations and their respective financial dealings.

3. Plaintiffs are estopped from bringing the current action in that they have committed unlawful acts against defendant, Beatrice Thedford and against the JWHCC and the JWHT. Further, Plaintiff, Marvin Sisson, has begun his action to discredit the lawful leaders of the organization so that he might obtain financial gain from the JWHCC, the JWHT and each organizations’ respective members. Further, Mr. Sisson has previously committed unlawful acts against the JWHCC and the JWHT by intentionally and unlawfully taking funds from members of said organization.

4. Plaintiffs are estopped from bringing the current action in that they have committed fraud against the JWHCC and the JWHT. Namely, Marvin Sisson entered into this suit intentionally and maliciously so that he could obtain undeserved monetary benefit from the JWHCC and JWHT.

AND NOW, in response to the specific allegations of the Plaintiffs, Defendant, BEATRICE THEDFORD would answer as follows:

1. Denied. Plaintiffs have neither the authority nor the consent of the members of the JWHCC or the JWHT to take any actions on behalf of either of the respective organizations.

2. Denied.

3. Denied.

4. Denied.

5. Denied. Defendant has returned all documents and property in her possession at the time of the filing of the petition.

6. Denied.

7. Defendant admits the allegations of Paragraph VII of Plaintiff’s complaint in that she has been involved with two lawsuits regarding the JWHCC in Oklahoma. Defendant denies the remaining allegations of Paragraph VII of Plaintiffs’ complaints and demands strict proof thereof,

Continued on Page 2.

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Regarding Estes Alder and Beatrice Thedford

The motion to appeal was filed on March 8, 2007 and Plaintiff's Response filed on March 20, 2007.

Order Denying Plaintiff's Motion to Dismiss

Now on this 16th day of April 2007, the Court having reviewed Defendent Estes Alder's Motion to Dismiss filed on March 8, 2007, an Plaintiff's Response filed on March 20, 2007, and being fully advised in the premises, finds that said Motion can be decided without a hearing pursuant to Rule 4(h) of the Rules for District Courts and finds that said Motion should be DENIED and said Defendant should file an answer within 20 days of the date of this order.

It is therefore ordered by the Court that Defendant Estes Alder's Motion to Dismiss is denied and said Defendant shall file an Answer within 20 days of the date of this order.

The Case CJ-2007-527

Signed by Bryan C. Dixon, District Judge
Stamped April 16, 2007 by Patricia Presley Court Clerk.

Copies were sent to Philip O. Watts, Robert N. Sheets and Estes Alder.
On April 18, 2007 there was a special entry of appearance for the purpose of contesting in personam jurisdiction only of Estes Alder by Attorney Robert N. Sheets.

And on April 20, 2007 Dixon, Motion to Dismiss overruled as per order of April 16, 2007.

April 20, 2007, Entry of Appearance by /attorney Mitchell D. Rozin for Plaintiff Michael Peasel, et al

May 4, 2007 Motion of Estes Alder to Dismiss for Lack of in Personal Jurisdiction and brief in support thereof

May 7, 2007 Notice of Hearing

May 9, 2007 Amended Notice of Hearing.

Report Generated by The Oklahoma Court Information System at May 12, 2007 14:07 PM

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In a lawsuit, the Oklahoma Department of Securities has accused the leaders of the Walling Heirs Association of fraud.

The association is based in Oklahoma City.

The state agency wanted Oklahoma County District Judge James Gullett to ban the association from recruiting members and from spending the members' contributions.

But the judge ruled the securities department first must have an administrative hearing on its accusations before filing a lawsuit. The judge sent the controversy back to the securities department for a hearing, but he said he will monitor the association's funds.

Thedford testified in court Thursday that she formed the association May 7, 1987, to finance and share in the proceeds from a planned lawsuit against several large oil companies over oil royalties and land in the Texas counties of Van Zandt, Rusk and Nacogdoches.

In legal documents, the state securities department reported the association had $1,133,765 in deposits from May 1987 to March 1989. But $830,550 has been taken out, it reported.

The Oklahoma Department of Securities has ordered leaders of the Walling Heirs Association to stop selling association memberships that the leaders claim were used to fund an effort to recover a lost family fortune.

The order which resulted from a hearing before a securities department administrative officer states that the Walling Heirs Association; its president, Beatrice Thedford; and her two daughters, Karen Thompson and LaDonna Spradlin, violated the Oklahoma Securities Act by selling unregistered securities.

The order, issued January 23, lists findings from four days of hearings in December and January.

The order detailed these findings, based on testimony: Thedford actively recruited members for the association by placing newspaper advertisements seeking people who believed themselves heirs of John Walling Sr.

At that time the securities department reported the association had made $1,133,765 in deposits from May 1987 to March 1989. But $830,550 has been withdrawn, the department reported.

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Continued

Heirs Set Meeting Over Oil -- Judy Kuhlman -- 11/06/1987

In 1859, Richard and his wife sold the entire 2,800 acres.

In 1928, oil was discovered on about 200 acres of the land that became a part of the Van Oil Field in Van Zandt County, Texas. By this time, the tract was owned by Alex Sanger, one of the founders of the Sanger Brothers department store in Dallas.

Because of controversy over the heirs to the land and oil royalties, a Texas court order set aside oil royalties in 1931 in accounts which Thedford said allowed the oil companies to use the money for drilling and investment until all the heirs were located.

At that time nearly $8 million was set aside, Thedford said, so the heirs believe that money has compounded to amounts totalling in the billions of dollars.
Thedford is president of the Walling association's board of directors. Other board members are Juanita Stahalheber and Oweeda Smith, both of Oklahoma City, Judy Vandiford of Texas and Beverly Walters of California.

Thedford said attorney Harold Brooks-Baker with Burke's Peerage of London, England, has been retained to validate the family tree and help locate the heirs.

Fourteen Walling heirs have been found in England as a result of Brooks-Baker's research. More than 2,000 heirs have been located in Oklahoma.

The meeting of the Walling family heirs is planned for noon Sunday at the Sheraton Century Center, 100 W Main. Thedford said about 1,000 heirs have told her they plan to attend.

New Article to Follow

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Page #03

Now this is sounding familiar -- by Ron Sharps
Heirs to Renew 123-Year-Old Land Fight -- 11/08/1987

An Oklahoma City woman is attempting to gather hundreds of descendants of a Texas man to continue a 123-year-old argument over the ownership of 5,000 acres of land and millions of dollars in oil royalties.

Beatrice Thedford said about 800 to 1,000 descendants of John Walling have been asked to gather in Oklahoma City today to learn about a lawsuit she plans to file.
Thedford said Friday she began working on the issue 10 years ago, carrying on an argument started when her ancestors were allegedly forced to sell the land in Van Zandt County, Texas.

The land was originally given to John Walling by the government in 1836, Thedford said. The wife of one of his 11 children was pressured into selling it for Confederate money, she said.

Thedford's grandfather filed a suit in Van Zandt County in 1941 claiming the sale was illegal, she said. He died in 1945, but the suit ended in victory, with the land being set aside for the descendants of John Walling, Thedford said.

Thedford said she is a sixth-generation descendant of Walling.

Van Zandt County District Court Clerk Veta Burns said people have been inquiring into the status of the original lawsuit filed in the county, but records do not appear to show the outcome of the case.

"There have been several people down here trying to find just what happened to the land," she said. "The records are old, and they're not indexed too well, and they're stored in about three different places."
Thedford said the discovery of oil on the land has generated new interest in its ownership.

She says Walling descendants from Oklahoma, Texas, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Florida, New Mexico, California and Washington have contacted her about the suit.

An attorney from Dallas, a genealogist from London and a title expert from Tennessee are all scheduled to attend today's meeting, Thedford said.

Thedford said heirs have been asked to pay $100 to $200 to join the Walling Heirs Trust to be a party to the suit and to cover costs of the litigation.

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Lure of Money, Oil, Land Brings Texan's Heirs to City
Judy Kuhlman -- 11/16/1987

It seemed like a huge family reunion, with all the handshaking, hugging and kissing going on.

But it wasn't the newest addition to the family or Aunt Martha's sugar recipe that dominated conversations of some 800 people at the Oklahoma City Sheraton Century Inn Nov. 8.

It was money, oil and land.

Most of the people were members of the Walling Heirs Association, which is trying to stake a claim to land and oil royalties they say belonged to their ancestor, John Walling Sr.

Walling was a Texas farmer who was given a Spanish land grant of 5,000 acres in 1836, according to association president Beatrice Thedford.

The heirs met to discuss regaining control of a portion of that land and 200 acres of oil royalties they believe was set aside by the courts for the Walling heirs in 1941. The Walling Heirs Association is contesting the original conveyance of the land by John Walling's son, Richard, in 1859.

Brown Peregoy, researcher for the association, said Richard sold not only his portion of the land he inherited but also that belonging to a dead brother. Peregoy said Richard sold land that did not belong to him and that he may have been forced to sell it for worthless Confederate money.

In 1928 oil was discovered on the land, and Walling heirs have been seeking to reclaim the land and royalties since 1937. The courts set aside the oil royalties on 200 acres of that land for the heirs in 1941, Peregoy said.

Conversations in the Sheraton lobby as much as two hours before the noon meeting were dominated by speculations of how much money and land might eventually end up in the hands of members of the Walling Heirs Association. Some members wore T-shirts depicting the old Walling homestead against a mass of oil wells.

When the meeting room door opened at noon, anticipation mounted and voices grew louder as the mass of people crowded in line to present their association cards. Only members of the association and the press were allowed inside the room.

All of the 800 who came to Oklahoma City that day had either paid $200 each if they were direct heirs of John Walling, Sr. or $100 each if they were descendant of a direct heir, Thedford said.

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Lure of Money, Oil, Land Brings Texan's Heirs to City
Judy Kuhlman -- 11/16/1987

In all, 1,200 Walling heirs have joined the association, she said.

Some will only receive a portion of a 10 percent finders' fee that will divided equally among association members.

Those who receive only a portion of the finders' fee think they have made a good investment, and those who helped form the association think the more members they have the better their chances of persuading the courts to settle a dispute on which some have worked for nearly 40 years, Thedford said.

"I've heard my dad and granny talk about this for so long, and I had hoped that we could get this settled before we lose granny," said Pam Eaton, granddaughter of Lula Hal Hildebrand, 90-year-old direct heir to John Walling Sr.

Juanita Stahleheber, a direct heir, said she had made plans for how she would spend the money she might receive.

"Before I die I want to go to Hawaii and Alaska," she said.

Clay Hildebrand, son of Lula Hal Hildebrand, said, "I am confident we will get the money this time and quicker than some think. Whatever we get I hope it will be enough to help those who need it most."
Dallas attorney E. Carter Crook has been hired to represent the Wallings.

The association expects to spend about $100,000 in attorney fees and filing fees to seek control of the royalties and about 1,500 acres of land, Thedford said. The association has already paid $24,000 to Peregoy to research laws governing Texas at that time and the title and abstract, she said.

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Texan's Descendants Working for Piece of Fortune
Judy Kuhlman -- 04/15/1988

Beatrice Thedford's home has been bustling since she closed her day-care center to focus on tracking down the fortune in oil and land she believes belongs to her and other descendants of John Walling Sr.

Thedford, who heads the Walling Heirs Association, said the 60-year battle of the descendants of John Walling Sr. to gain control of nearly 200 acres of oil royalties in a rich Texas oil field and several thousands of acres of land is intensifying.

The Van Zandt County Court in Texas set aside the royalties in 1931 when a controversy arose over legal ownership of the land, Thedford said.

"We're here from the crack of dawn when the chickens get up until midnight some nights," said Donna Spradlin of Oklahoma City, a Walling descendant who said she goes to work daily in Thedford's small pink house on SW 44.

Thedford, who also works for a large corporation, said she closed her day-care center to devote more time and space to the research needed to prepare for the filing of what she thinks will be a multimillion-dollar lawsuit.

The quest for an oil fortune also has attracted attention overseas, particularly in England, where The Mail on Sunday, a London newspaper, ran a two-page spread on Walling descendants who have been found in England. Also, a reporter for the British Broadcasting Co. called and interviewed two of the descendants who live in Oklahoma.

Thedford said she and other members of her family spent 30 days in January and February researching dusty old records in several different county courthouses in Texas. Thedford said they found about 16,000 more acres that the Walling descendants may seek in court.

The search had some exciting moments, Thedford said. When the family was searching through records in the courthouse at Canton, Texas, on January 27, they were told by the court clerk that police had found a bomb near the courthouse. Thedford said they stayed in the courthouse and continued to search records while officers dismantled the bomb.

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Texan's Descendants Working for Piece of Fortune
Judy Kuhlman -- 04/15/1988

Canton police told The Oklahoman a bomb was found on a gas meter a block from the courthouse.

Thedford said the family's quest traces back to 1836, when John Walling Sr. was given nearly 5,000 acres of land in east Texas for his military valor in helping to create the Republic of Texas. Walling, father of 11 children, left the bulk of that land _2,800 acres to his two youngest sons, one of whom died a minor without direct heirs, she said.

Thedford said the other son later sold the entire 2,800 acres, an act which she said was an illegal conveyance of the property because part of the land should have been divided among the other nine children.

E. Carter Crook, Walling Heirs Association attorney, said another nine to 12 months may pass before a suit is filed because of the intense research of records that is required.

The Walling Heirs Association now has more than 2,000 members residing in almost every state in the United States and three foreign countries, Thedford said.

Association members include the oldest living direct descendant from each of Walling's grandchildren, who pay $200 each, and families of those direct descendants, who can join for $100 each.

Some will only receive a portion of a 10 percent finders' fee that will be divided equally among association members, Thedford has said.

Non-family members can also join for $100 in hopes of sharing in a finders' fee, she said.

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Walling Heirs Investors Say They Were Bilked
Hearing Continues on Restraining Order Against Group

Judy Kuhlman -- 07/07/1989

Three former investors in a group formed to seek a lost fortune in oil and land in an east Texas oil field say they believe the president pumped investors' money down a dry hole.

A lawsuit filed by a state agency has cast a foreboding shadow on the Walling Heirs Association, a group ostensibly formed to seek recovery of oil and gas royalties on 200 acres in Van Zandt County, Texas.
Beatrice Thedford, president of the Walling Heirs Association, has collected $1.1 million from more than 4,000 people throughout the United States and from several foreign countries who wanted to join her in her quest for oil royalties and land in a rich Texas oil field.

But investors Ruth Wallace, Judy Vanderford and Herschel Counts say they have been bilked.

In the 1800s, John Walling Sr. gave the 200 acres to his children, who later were illegally forced to sell the land, contends Beatrice Thedford, the association's founder and the key figure in a Oklahoma Department of Securities probe.

In the lawsuit filed last week, the securities department accused the Walling Heirs Association, Thedford, and her two daughters, Karen Thompson and LaDonna Spradlin, of fraud in the sale of association memberships.

The agency asked an Oklahoma County district judge to ban the three women and other members of Walling Heirs from selling unregistered securities in the association. The agency also wants the court to order restitution.

Judge John Amick issued a temporary restraining order forbidding association members from spending any of the association money, disposing of any of the association's assets or selling any more memberships in the association.

Chuck Black, the association's attorney, filed an emergency application to modify or set aside the restraining order because Thedford said she needs the money to pay bills.

Thursday, Judge Amick heard three hours of testimony from Thedford, then recessed the hearing until 1:30 p.m. today.

Thedford insisted last week that she and her daughters are innocent.

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Walling Heirs Investors Say They Were Bilked
Hearing Continues on Restraining Order Against Group
Judy Kuhlman -- 07/07/1989

But Vanderford, Counts and Wallace said they are suspicious about the way Thedford operated the association. They said they were kicked out when they asked too many questions.

Counts, a Wheatland resident who worked in the association's office for almost a year, said he believed Thedford became obsessed with dreams of fame and fortune.

"She was consumed with the power and glory of it. I think it was her ambition to be on the cover of The National Enquirer. She reads it all the time," Counts said.

Wallace, of Choctaw, said she believes association members were defrauded and victims of a series of lies.

She said she believes the Walling land was legally transferred, and that the association has no legal claim to it or the royalties.

"It should have been stopped, and the money (collected for the memberships) sent back," Wallace said. "Many of the people in this were below poverty level. They were heirs that had this dream for 50 years."

Vanderford said she believed Thedford knew the association had no grounds for a claim.

She said Thedford had grown attached to a lifestyle the former members claim was funded by membership fees.

But Black said Friday the group does have enough information to file a multimillion-dollar lawsuit against the oil companies that are now using the royalties. He said the lawsuit will be filed soon.

Thedford and association attorneys have said they do not know the true value of the royalties, but that the value could be in the billions of dollars.

Vanderford also said Thedford did not account for the money she spent on numerous trips to Texas and other states. Thedford said the trips were taken for business reasons to research records in courthouses.

"If you had $1.1 million and did not have to worry about a dime you spent, what would you do?" Vanderford said.

She said Thedford never told the association's board of directors how much money the association had or how it was being spent.

Vanderford said Thedford never produced documents she claims she found in research on the Walling land deals.

Thedford has said she had given an accountant's report of the association's financial condition to association members.

Vanderford said Thedford kicked her out when she demanded an accounting of the group's funds. Wallace said she was booted out because she badgered Thedford about why the lawsuit seeking land recovery had not been filed.

Thedford said Wallace was ousted because she altered her contract with the association and because Wallace had said she was not an heir.

Thedford said Vanderford tried to cause a split in association ranks and was kicked out because she misrepresented Thedford's family in letters to association members.

Former association employee Counts said anyone who was willing to give Thedford a Social Security number and $200 was allowed to join the association, even if that person was not an heir of John Walling Sr.

Meanwhile, association member Gloria Walling of Elk City said she and 21 other members have regrouped and sent out 400 letters to association members soliciting funds to hire another attorney.

She said the group will seek to recover the association's assets in order to continue the pursuit of the oil royalties and land.

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