Perjury suspected in alleged Ponzi conspirator case

Central figure in investment scheme gave answers under oath that others aren't buying

Email | Print By Ken Whitehouse

Donna Jones, a former employee of admitted embezzler and Ponzi scheme operator Michael J. Park of Brentwood, appeared before the U.S. Bankruptcy Court on Wednesday. Jones declared bankruptcy last month.

The former bookkeeper of the embezzler was required under oath to give details of her financial situation, but her answers to questions from the government-appointed trustee will likely create more legal trouble for the Dickson resident.

While Jones has yet to be identified by name as a person of interest in any federal criminal investigation, a person called "Individual A" in Park's criminal case had responsibilities known to be duties that were performed by Jones. A story published in April by The City Paper identified Jones as "Individual A," a charge that has not been refuted.

Appearing before the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Jones declared that the reason she was filing for bankruptcy was that she had previously been a full-time employee of a company that went belly-up and was now only working part-time. That may be true, but there is more to the statement than meets the eye.

Jones worked for Park Capital Management Group, the company operated by Park, and declared that when the company went under, she could no longer meet her financial obligations.

She claimed, under oath, that she had not transferred personal property in the last year, had not transferred assets in the last three years, had not given gifts to her husband or children "of any financial substance" over that same period, or ever used a PCMG credit card.

The answers to those questions will be hotly contested in the months to come.

With copies of the April edition of The City Paper in hand, government officials asked Jones about her automobiles, computers and personal finances.

Jones declared that the 2007 Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck she had purchased was bought by trading in a 2005 Chevy Trailblazer. Estranged members of Jones family claim that Jones has stated in the past that she had bought the Silverado with money given to her by Park.

The truck, which GMAC has placed a claim on, has had a significant amount of customization work done on it since it was purchased. Among the upgrades are chrome work and the installation of a high-end stereo system. Jones said that she has surrendered her interest in the truck to her husband, David Jones, who declared bankruptcy himself in 2004.

David Jones' bankruptcy and previous marriage are also tainted with PCMG money. According to Donna Jones' family, attorneys dealing with both Donna and David Jones' first marriages and custody issues with their children were paid with PCMG checks. One check was made out to a Dickson attorney for $3,000 and was paid out of PCMG funds.

Donna Jones stated under oath that she had not given her family "gifts" of any monetary value and that she only owned one laptop computer. Family members dispute that, stating that in 2007 Jones claimed that Park had given her a $10,000 bonus and that she used the money to lavish gifts upon her family.

Among the gifts, which were seen being purchased at a Wal-Mart in Dickson County, were Toshiba computers, computer games and cell phones. At one time, there were six Toshiba computers in the Jones household and the "latest cell phones," according to extended family members. One gift purchased for Jones' son was personal electronic gaming equipment valued at over $600.

Jones stated under oath that she had not used nor had access to a PCMG credit card. That statement will likely be disputed as well as Jones paid for family vacations, including a 2007 trip to Florida, that she said at the time had been paid for by Park and PCMG. According to family members, Jones and her husband used a credit card that they said was a PCMG company card.

As to claims by Jones that she had not transferred assets in the last three years, that also is in dispute. Martha Stinson, Jones' mother, says her daughter regularly deposited checks into her and her late husband's checking account only to move it back out within 24 hours.

Stinson says that her daughter did not have power of attorney and that she trusted her daughter at the time. She tells NashvillePost.com that she was told the money was being invested and they were taking part in a "rare' opportunity and would get a 30 percent return.

Stinson, who now lives in a trailer home in Burns, was dealing with her husband's brain cancer, which proved fatal, at the time and did not question what her daughter told her. She now regrets that as her life savings has been completely wiped out.

Another issue within the family, and questioned in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, is a quitclaim deed placed by Jones on her parents' home. Jones gained $25,000 from the sale of the house in 2008, but her mother states that her husband signed the quitclaim deed while undergoing intensive chemotherapy and did not know what he was signing.

Jones stated before the bankruptcy trustee that she had been the one paying the mortgage, but the trustee said that she wanted a copy of the quitclaim deed in the bankruptcy filing for review.

Finally, Jones was asked about a line in her bankruptcy filing that stated there was a criminal investigation against her by the U.S. government. Jones said it was a "mistake."

That "mistake" may come to fruition soon.