Investigators: Sober Cab CEO Accused of Ponzi Scheme

MINNEAPOLIS - Days after the founder of a sober cab service died in a head-on crash, victims are came forward saying they were scammed out of roughly a million dollars in a bogus investment scheme. Scott Judd started the highly praised non-profit, DWI Ride Home in 2007.

In 2007, Judd was convicted of forging more than $180,000 in checks. He has numerous judgments against him for unpaid loans. The people who spoke to FOX 9 say, he was just a smooth talking con man and his DWI ride sober cab business was just a new way steal money.

When the stock market crashed in October 2008, nervous investors started cashing out and thanks to guys like Bernie Madoff and Tom Petters, American's were reintroduced to the ponzi scheme.

Alan Caplan represented Deanna Coleman. She was the corporate whistle blower who took down Petters' empire by exposing his financial house of cards. Caplan reviewed the documents obtained by FOX 9 and came to one simple conclusion.

Investors say, Judd possessed the qualities as Petters and used them for his own ponzi scheme. His brother Chris says, Judd was a "master at selling hope." Friends of Judd say he was motivated by an altruistic drive to help others by keeping drunk drivers off the road.

On September 15, he was killed in a head on crash in Chisago County. Investors in Judd's business say the day he died has significance for them. September 15 was also the deadline to pay back their loans before they took their case to the authorities.

FOX 9 spoke with a group of investors who didn't want to be identified -- a group that includes dozens who thought they were becoming part of a worthy cause. Many even volunteered as drivers. But the "feel good loans" to Judd's non-profit company also came with a hefty reward -- the promise of a 25% return every three weeks.

And like all Ponzi schemes, those who got in early got paid.

That word of mouth soon spread and the money started pouring in. As word got around, neighbors began withdrawing money from retirement and college funds. But the good times didn't last long and the excuses started piling up.

Many investors were paid in cash and then there is his criminal history.
Judd and DWI Ride Home have been named in more than a dozen civil judgments, totaling more than a million dollars. But because he defaulted on private loans, no criminal action was even taken. But by then, Judd was already a convicted felon.

Those who loaned Judd money were told their investment would be combined with a 100 percent matching grant from Anheuser-Busch. But the King of Beers says, no such program ever existed.

The group has filed a complaint with the FBI and met with the Minnesota attorney general.  But Lori Swanson's office said, they can't comment on specific consumer complaints. But the Anoka County attorney's office is looking into it.

Judd lived with this wife and two children in an Andover home, operating DWI Ride Home out of his small office in Ham Lake.

The 42-year-old died when his company van crossed the center line and struck a semi head-on . The accident is still under investigation but the state patrol says, Judd wasn't wearing his seat belt.