Mardi Gras Krewe Memberships paid by Ponzi Scheme Profits

Ponchatoula man charged with running Ponzi scheme
By Jen DeGregorio, nola.com
November 19, 2009, 6:10PM

A Ponchatoula man has been arrested for running a Ponzi scheme in which he bilked at least 200 investors out of more than $11 million and allegedly used the money to pay for Mardi Gras krewe memberships and plastic surgery, among other personal expenses.

William J. Chaucer Jr. was booked in the Tangipahoa Parish Prison on charges of felony theft, selling unregistered securities, making material misrepresentations in the sale of securities and operating as an unregistered securities dealer, according to Attorney General Buddy Caldwell’s office, which investigated the case with the Tangipahoa Sheriff’s Office. Chaucer’s bond has not been set.

william_chaucer.jpgRoger Zettler, The Advocate/The Associated PressWilliam and Cheryl Chaucer were photographed in September 2008 at a banquet celebrating her selection as Miss Louisiana Senior America at Carter Plantation in Springfield, La.

Chaucer was the principal of several financial companies, according to Caldwell’s office: Chaucer Holding Company, Chaucer Financial Services, American Credit of Hammond, American Credit of Covington and City Credit of Ponchatoula. The companies closed in September.

A Ponzi scheme works by juggling money among a stream of investors, using cash from new clients to create the appearance of profits on existing accounts. In Chaucer’s case, clients were told that their money was being invested in one of his loan companies. Individual investments ranged from $10,000 to $417,000, according to Caldwell’s office.

But Chaucer was actually using the cash to bankroll an extravagant lifestyle. Caldwell’s office said Chaucer spent $400,000 on Mardi Gras krewe memberships and krewe-related expenses for his family, $5,500 in plastic surgery and $11,800 in cosmetic dental work for Cheryl Chaucer, who competed in beauty pageants. Chaucer also allegedly spent $5,558 for tickets and ads to the Senior America Inc. pageant, along with $14,275.74 in photos, $20,905.74 in jewelry and “thousands more dollars” on expenses related to his wife’s pageant career.

A telephone listed in the name of William Chaucer at an address in Ponchatoula has been disconnected. Donald Hyatt, listed with the attorney general’s office as an attorney for Chaucer, did not return several telephone calls seeking comment.

The Web site for Senior America Inc. lists Cheryl Chaucer as “Ms. Louisiana Senior America 2008.” A biography on the site describes her as a talented singer who has performed with the likes of Fats Domino, Pete Fountain and the Neville Brothers. Cheryl Chaucer is also credited with serving on the boards and committees of a variety of major New Orleans institutions, including the New Orleans Opera Association, New Orleans City Ballet and Audubon Zoo. The Web site also describes the Chaucers as members of five Mardi Gras organizations. Cheryl Chaucer has reigned as Queen of Mercury, according to the site.

She and her husband were scheduled to reign together as King and Queen of Excalibur in 2011, but the couple resigned from those posts in August citing “business problems,” said Diane Brown, captain of the Metairie parading organization.

Chaucer is not the first Louisianan charged with running a Ponzi scheme. In August, former Metairie resident Judith Zabalaoui received an eight-year prison sentence for operating a Ponzi scheme that stole $5 million from clients in the New Orleans area.

About 1,700 Louisianans may have lost a combined $500 million in investments with R. Allen Stanford, the Texas financier who has been charged with stealing $7 billion in an international Ponzi scheme. Stanford has pleaded innocent of the charge.

Citing Super Bowl, Rhea scrubs its 2010 parade in Metairie

By Mark Waller, The Times-Picayune
November 11, 2009, 7:20PM

Not wanting to compete with the biggest game in football, and potentially the biggest game in New Orleans Saints history, Metairie’s Krewe of Rhea has canceled its 2010 Carnival parade on Feb. 7, Super Bowl Sunday.

Rhea captain Anna Marie Soto said Wednesday that krewe members concluded turnout would be low, whether the now 8-0 Saints are in the game or not. They expect turnout to be zero if the Saints are indeed playing.

“That would’ve affected our riders and people coming in the street,” Soto said. “If the Saints get in the playoffs and in the Super Bowl, we wouldn’t have anybody out there.”

Rhea normally rolls in the early afternoon two Sundays before Mardi Gras and has been parading on Veterans Memorial Boulevard since 1969. Soto said she worked with Jefferson Parish officials to find another date in 2010, but the only options were evening time slots that didn’t appeal to krewe members because the parade attracts entire families with children.

“We really just have to sit out this year,” Soto said, adding that members didn’t want to risk spending the money to produce the parade only to find the streets and floats sparsely occupied.

Another Metairie krewe that has long paraded immediately after Rhea, the Krewe of Centurians, anticipated the Super Bowl conflict and switched its 2010 date a year ago, said captain Norman Bourgeois Jr. Centurians moved forward five days to Friday, Feb. 12, partly because of the game and partly because the krewe was already interested in making the move, Bourgeois said.

By parading on Friday night of Carnival’s final weekend instead of the preceding weekend, he said, the krewe hopes to increase member participation and crowd sizes and boost that day’s Friday’s Carnival activities in Metairie, which Bourgeois described as inconsistent in recent years.

“It’s been a long time since we’ve had a really good parade on Friday,” to compete with the offerings in New Orleans, he said.

New Orleans officials have not heard any concerns from krewes scheduled for Feb. 7 about competing with the Super Bowl, said James Ross, spokesman for Mayor Ray Nagin.

While the Super Bowl was part of the decision for Centurions, Bourgeois said, krewe officials had no idea at the time they sought their date change that the Saints would be making an historic run.

But the team’s bright prospects halfway through the regular season seem to validate the decision, he said.

“I don’t think anybody would want to miss that opportunity” to watch the Saints’ first Super Bowl, Bourgeois said. “We’ve got to dream.”

. . . . . . .

2010 Krewe du Vieux update

Thanks to Satchmo.com for King info.

The satirical Krewe du Vieux parade will take place on Saturday, January 30, 2010, rolling through the Marigny and French Quarter. The King of KdV for 2010 will be music legend Dr. John, with Priestess Miriam Chamani reigning as Queen.

Krewe du Vieux has sub krewes, here’s a list:

Krewe of Comatose
Krewe of Mama Roux
Krewe of Underwear
Krewe of LEWD
Krewe of Drips and Discharges
Krewe de CRAPS
Krewe of CRUDE
Seeds of Decline

Mardi Gras the Movie (2010) features Carmen Electra

The story:

Three college pals, depressed with their current social situation, decide to venture to New Orleans, a magical place where a man and his beverage can walk the streets undisturbed in pursuit of the happiness that has thus far eluded them.

Starring: Carmen Electra, Nicholas D’Agosto, Bret Harrison, Arielle Kebbel, Regina Hall, Josh Gad, Danneel Harris. Director: Phil Dornfeld; Studio: Screen Gems; Genre: Comedy; Rating: NR; Release Date: TBA 2010

Sydney AU Mardi Gras shake-up for 2010

Posted in: International Daily News
By GayNZ.cpm Daily News Staff

Sydney’s legendary Mardi Gras Parade and Party, traditionally held on the same night, are now planned on different weekends for 2010.

The Parade is scheduled for Saturday 27 February, then the Party will happen the following weekend – Saturday 6 March.

“In a move designed to make Mardi Gras an even more attractive event in the calendar of Sydneysiders and the world’s gay travelers, New Mardi Gras plans a more concentrated two-week festival, curated in tandem with its many arts partners,” explains Festival executive producer Danielle Harvey.

“A review of major arts festivals around the world showed they were typically two week festivals. By moving to two weeks we will be able to create a much more impactful experience for both local and international audiences.”

As part of the shorter festival, Sydney’s popular Fair Day will be held on Sunday 21 February, and the Harbour Party by the Opera House will be on the day after the Parade, on Sunday 28 February.

The Festival’s official 2010 theme will be ‘Mardi Gras’ History of the World’, aiming to incorporate LGBT people’s stories through the ages and provide a gay take on some of the great moments and figures of history.

Sydney AU Mardi Gras Festivities

New Orleans Hornets to hold Mardi Gras Night in January

The New Orleans Hornets plan a Mardi Gras Krewe Night on January 20th 2010 versus the Memphis Grizzlies and another “Mardi Gras Night at the Hive” in February. The January event will offer Carnival clubs the opportunity to win prizes based upon their attendance and participation. The Mardi Gras Night at the Hive will feature a full Mardi Gras-themed game with a Hornets Mardi Gras parade at halftime.

Krewe turns to advertising in Jefferson Parish for riders

from Susan Edwards / Eyewitness News, sedwards@wwltv.com

METAIRIE, La. – Call it the thrill of the ride or a chance of a lifetime, but joining your favorite krewe and riding along during carnival season may no longer be as difficult or as exclusive as you may think.
Video: Watch the Story

Mardi Gras expert Errol Laborde said the times are changing.

“I think the image to a lot of people is it’s a big, exclusive deal, but that’s hardly the case,” Laborde said.

While some parading organizations are invitation only, there are several who are scrambling to attract anyone interested in membership and an unforgettable experience.

“With some of the krewes, you’re seeing more of an effort to find riders and it may or may not be totally related to the economy,” Laborde said.

Because of financial hardships, some krewes have feared 2010 could be a tough year to keep old members and attract new ones. Laborde said it’s simply too soon to tell if that’s the case; however, there are some unusual advertising techniques seeking the attention of interested riders.

Krewe of Argus in Jefferson Parish has been rolling on Fat Tuesday for more than three decades. Co-Captain Lawrence Chehardy said membership is at 400 right now, which is average for this time of year. They’re hoping that mass mailers will only boost interest and membership for the upcoming carnival season.

“Argus is a business, it’s a Mardi Gras krewe, but it’s a business. We have to watch how we spend money and certainly in these economic times it impacts everybody, but that said, we’re always looking for new members and new blood,” Chehardy said.

Chehardy said that over the years their website has contributed to successful parades, but the flyers were sent to residents along the Veterans Memorial Boulevard corridor as an added way to generate interest.

“We’ve gotten riders from outside Jefferson Parish, from out of country who have gone to the internet, did a search and found the Krewe of Argus and we’ve had them ride with us,” Chehardy said.

Unruly Mardi Gras tourist could get 29 years in prison

From nola.com:
by Brendan McCarthy, The Times-Picayune
Friday August 21, 2009

Headed for Mardi Gras, the tourist was rude and rowdy, ordering the stewardess to bring him another drink.

When he was denied more alcohol, Paul Henry Boritzer told a fateful fib.

He said he was an air marshal and a U.S. Airway pilot. Bad idea.

For that, Boritzer will face a federal judge who in December will decide on a sentence that, at its maximum, would put him in prison for 29 years and carry a $1 million fine.

Boritzer, 46, of New York City, was found guilty Thursday in federal court in New Orleans of interfering with a flight crew and impersonating a federal air marshal while flying from New York to New Orleans this year, according to U.S. Attorney Jim Letten’s office.

Bound for Mardi Gras, Boritzer apparently started his partying well before he got on the Jet Blue flight. Ten minutes after takeoff, he began walking about the cabin “in a loud and disruptive behavior, ” according to an affidavit filed by FBI Special Agent Steven Naum. The stewardess noted he smelled of alcohol and appeared drunk.

When she asked that he return to his seat, he pulled fake rank, saying he was with the feds. The real feds, however, later became involved. Any commercial flight is considered “special aircraft jurisdiction” of the United States under federal law.

Boritzer, who also goes by the name John I. Michaels, repeatedly argued with the flight crew and paced the plane’s cabin. The pilot was notified.

When the flight attendant delivered the pilot’s final order for him to sit down, Boritzer replied, “Who do you think you are?” according to court records. He followed up by calling her a “bitch.”

After his arrest, Boritzer signed a $20,000 personal recognizance bond and promised to refrain from alcohol and stay off commercial flights unless approved by his “pretrial services” officer.

He is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 9 by U.S. District Court Judge Carl Barbier.

FOUNDER OF HOUMA’S KREWE OF TUT PLEADS GUILTY TO PASSING BAD CHECKS

From Gambit Weekly:
Charlotte Brown, the founder of the Krewe of Tut in Houma, pleaded guilty to passing more than $9,000 in bogus checks to pay for the krewe’s first parade in February. Among the worthless checks Brown wrote was one for more than $8,500 to a bus company that transported the Jackson State University band to the krewe’s parade. Brown has been placed on two years probation and ordered to repay the outstanding debt by August 13- or face jail time. Full story from the Houma Today newspaper:
click here

Fire at Krewe du Vieux den!!

Got this from one of the New Orleans bloggers:
Just got home. Fire trucks everywhere. KdV Den fire. Seeds, Lewd and TOKIN floats are toast. Fire out now. Looked in for a sec before being shooed away. Front right corner of the den is just pretty much gone–I mean the stuff that was in that corner. Wanted to take pics but wasn’t allowed. Will try to get over there again. No word on the cause.