Bankruptcy

Kirk Wrights Commits Suicide Before Sentencing

By Scott Riddle

Kirk Wright, recently convicted of a massive fraud, and head of Chapter 11 Debtor International Management Associates (discussed in previous posts here, here and here) committed suicide on Saturday, prior to being sentenced.  From the AJC - 

Wright, 37, was found dead Saturday in the cell, where he was being held for federal authorities while awaiting sentencing. A jury convicted him Wednesday of all 47 counts of mail fraud, securities fraud and money laundering stemming from a scam he ran through his firm, International Management Associates...

But prosecutors convinced jurors that Wright had concocted an elaborate scam to have investors fund his lavish lifestyle, which included spending $50,000 on a Rolex watch, $200,000 on a Lamborghini and $500,000 on a wedding.

Wright's firm attracted deep-pocketed clients, many of them family friends and NFL players, who sank more than $155 million into International Management between 2001 and 2005. But in 2006, his clients learned their money was gone and Wright had been lying to them ...

Former Denver Broncos player Steve Atwater grew suspicious in 2005, and he and other NFL player-clients called in their investments. Wright fled after his checks to them bounced.

Authorities arrested Wright in May 2006 as he sipped cocktails at poolside of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Miami. In his room, they found fake identification and credit cards as well as I.D.-making equipment. While a fugitive, Wright had bought a $40,000 Mercedes and a seaside condominium in Florida.

He had been held without bond since his arrest. Meanwhile, authorities auctioned his belongings for $1.9 million. His assets included luxury homes in Marietta and in downtown Atlanta near the Georgia Aquarium, a 2005 $115,000 Bentley Continental and $110,000 2003 Aston Martin Vanguard.

Full post as published by Georgia Bankruptcy Blog on May 25, 2008 (boomark / email).