Recent sent letter to clients

Recently Strawn sent this letter to clients. If you have received a similar letter, do not pursue your taxes being prepared by him. Feather Bay Ventures is also owned by Strawn as was Blackbriar Investments and Tahoe North Investments, not by "other owners" as he claims.

Re: 2009 Tax Return

Dear Client,

We have prepared your tax returns for 2009. Initially you may have received a letter that said that there was a prepaid fee of $ 750.00 which paid for all services and distributions from Feather Bay Ventures, LLC in any amount. The letter was meant to convey that those that prepaid the fee would have their returns worked on first and that is the case although we are behind, but will catch up quickly. Also, this letter, originated by Juelyie Lee, was incorrect and did not state that there was a “cap” on the amount of the distributions from Feather Bay Ventures, LLC of $ 10,000 that could be offered. The letter unfortunately omitted that if larger distributions were necessary for you to receive a larger refund, there would be an additional charge or fee. Please understand that we have to pay the owners of Feather Bay for these distributions and at the fee of $ 750.00 for tax return and disbursement, puts this firm is in a position where we actually lose money. Ms Lee did not have the authority to make this offer and we, unfortunately, now have to send this letter.

The good news is that we can provide additional benefits for you if you so choose, but there will be an additional fee. Enclosed are three tax returns examples. Example I, shows where you stand with no distribution, owing IRS $ 2001.00. Example II, is prepared using the “cap” amount of $ 10,000 and results in your receiving a refund in the amount of $ 712.00. Example III, shows what you would receive by using a larger, but “save” distribution and results in a tax refund in the amount of $ 11,825.00 not including state refunds. If you choose option III, the fee for that distribution would normally be $ 5000, which I believe is similar to prior years. Due to the circumstances, we are willing to accept a fee of $ 2500, in addition to what you already paid and simply need to know which option you wish to choose. If it is Option III, we will complete the returns, maximize the refunds, federal and state, and send the completed returns to you from our office in Vancouver, WA. However, it would be necessary for you to make payment prior to our finalization of the returns at the office in Newport Beach, CA or send it directly to us at the Vancouver, WA office (address in letterhead) and we will FedEx your tax returns directly to you. If you have any questions, please contact us at 360-314-6274; ask for either Michelle or Heather.

Sincerely,

[sent without signature to avoid delay]

Ron V Strawn PhD

Advisor to Columbia Financial

Enclosures

You can find the owners of a business by doing an entity search at the secretary of state in the state that business is based in. Feather Bay, Blackbriar, and Tahoe can all be found on the NV SOS site at the following link:

http://nvsos.gov/sosentitysearch/

These are printscreens showing Strawn listed as the registered agent of the companies. He is also the owners of them.

http://nvsos.gov/sosentitysearch/CorpDetails.aspx?lx8nvq=hKF9us3In30vQTOEZz7YDw%253d%253d&nt7=0

So Coast's owner:
http://nvsos.gov/sosentitysearch/CorpDetails.aspx?lx8nvq=kdnqDHLvjPakAregTDO30A%253d%253d&nt7=0

Blackbriar's Owner:
Anne Daniels aka Penny Strawn, Ron's wife's maiden name
http://nvsos.gov/sosentitysearch/CorpDetails.aspx?lx8nvq=xn7ETT7OdFP%252byXl%252fBuS5Bw%253d%253d&nt7=0

Tahoe's Owner:
http://nvsos.gov/sosentitysearch/CorpDetails.aspx?lx8nvq=rL8Zs3kJb1izpT9xW%252fcX6g%253d%253d&nt7=0

Summit Tax's Owner:
http://nvsos.gov/sosentitysearch/CorpDetails.aspx?lx8nvq=Ope6fnfpNFbQEE%252biPaUv7Q%253d%253d&nt7=0