It was reported last year that Columbus Blue Jackets defenseman Jack Johnson was up to $10 million in debt, supposedly with his parents at fault. First reported by Columbus Dispatch’s Aaron Portzline, it was presented to the public that the defenseman had given financial control over to his family in 2008 and over that time they had accumulated the aforementioned debt.
Most recently these quotes were given to Canadian sports outlet TSN courtesy of Jeffrey Levinson, who represents RFF Family Partnership, a lender group that had previously given money to Johnson:
“Despite a year to investigate and report to the court, Johnson … offers no explanation. That is the real story, and everyone has been looking for an answer since the beginning of this case. We do know they spent millions of dollars on luxury items, including two California homes, hundreds of thousands of dollars in improvements to his Ann Arbor home, jewelry, travel, two Ferraris, three BMWs, a Hummer, a $50,000 wedding while in bankruptcy, etc.
Now, rather than do the right thing, as Johnson has said over and over again that he wants to do, he has spent more than a million dollars more on his attorneys trying to avoid paying the very debts he has admitted are his obligations.”
It should be noted that Johnson is trying to move the case from Chapter 11 bankruptcy to Chapter 7, which would effectively liquify his assets and could possibly mean less money for the lenders. The most recent allegation courtesy of the lenders is that the family is working in conjunction with one another to avoid paying their debts.
While the current war of words in the public domain may be unsavory, it could end up bringing charges against Johnson, who would be facing federal fraud charges if it is found he conspired with his family in these bankruptcy filings.
