Jpop is lucky he isn't in the trunk of a car right now...
(Topic ID: 92436)
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Cary, NC
Quoted from Wolfmarsh:Blaming Pinside is like blaming Facebook for cyber bullying.
Agreed.
However, I see the point that some folks might think that when Pinside creates "manufacturer" forum status and allows companies like this and SkitB to have special moderated threads for "news", etc, etc it gives the air of credibility.
I agree 100% that the fraudsters are to blame.... but I also heap a dose of blame towards some of the people that decided to VOLUNTARILY take up the mantle of CFO (chief fanboy officer) and pump the projects. It perpetuated the fraud....
Quoted from Msch:Jpop is lucky he isn't in the trunk of a car right now...
Not condoning violence but metaphorically I agree.
Quoted from rotordave:It's real all right. I was told about it two days ago, and the recipient asked me to post it.
rd.
Had it not blown up at Expo like it did, I'm sure he'd still be executing the AIW Ponzi.
The response by him regarding the request to buy into AIW is astounding. It's hard to even come up with the right words for it.
As for criminal charges, i don't see how you are going to get the DA to waste their time with this case.
Can you prove intent to defraud? This is a "buyer beware" case that went down the tubes. He can show what he's done, and sadly, I think it would be difficult to get the DA to take on that case.
As for civil litigation, he's toast, like i've said, sue him if it makes you feel better. Emotions are running high.
I'm gonna say it again, for the 100th time, having somebody come in and present an option B, does NOT in any way absolve John from what he did and continues to do.
He's a terrible person in many ways. My feelings about him are well documented.
Maybe this thing can't be salvaged. John himself is so toxic that it might just be a total write off.
When the litigation starts, everybody loses and the lawyers win. But that's just where we are at right now.
Quoted from 27dnast:WOW, just wow.
It's really hard to believe it has all come to this...and this is the second time something like this has happened in the last few months.
I hope the pre-order folks get something back out.
Geesh.
Is it really that hard to believe? 2 separate people who had never mass produced pinball machines on their own obviously got over their head and lots of people are out a lot of money. If some of the reports are true about his recent actions there needs to be some time served.
His email is basically telling everyone sign here n then proceed to grab your ankles. No way anyone ever sees a game.
If Kevin is getting away without criminal charges, no way anything would stick on John.
This isn't even a Ponzi scheme, BTW. A Ponzi scheme requires early investors to get a return on their investment (at the cost of new investors) and seeing others get this return gives new investors the CONfidence to send money.
Example: I saw my grandma get Social Security, so I'm OK with it coming out of my paycheck. (not to get political it's just a very easy example)
Nobody has gotten anything out of John, and probably never will. If you're still in this for the rarity, just remember once BBB or Kingpin gets remade the era of games appreciating past 10k is over.
What really boils my frog is if John paid himself anything more than gas station attendant wages for 4 years, he'll have pocketed more money NOT making games than I will make on the entire AMH run.
See why some of us get pissed at "classic designers" and "desirable licenses" getting a free pass?
Quoted from rai:I don't know what type of incorporation his company is he personally may be liable for the damages he caused, he has not opened his books but this is not just a case of being a poor businessman it's a case of reckless and deliberate fraud same as Kevin.
I believe his leasing a large complex was totally wrong and reckless. He should have noticed that burning many thousands of dollars a month for the number of months he was letting pass that the numbers didn't add up.
I am sure he has known for a long while that his numbers didn't add up and also that he was dicking around for 4 years and still has no prototype. And yet he still goes on collecting for AIW?
That's where i got the stop sign. Couldn't get him to disclose any numbers. I think it might have turned into deliberate fraud about two years into the process.
Asking for people to verify their deposits is telling. There aren't any records to speak of obviously.
Just like when he told Chris from Cointaker at Expo that he couldn't pay him because he didn't have time to tally up the invoices owed to him.
Quoted from benheck:Nobody has gotten anything out of John, and probably never will. If you're still in this for the rarity, just remember once BBB or Kingpin gets remade the era of games appreciating past 10k is over.
What really boils my frog is if John paid himself anything more than gas station attendant wages for 4 years, he'll have pocketed more money NOT making games than I will make on the entire AMH run.
See why some of us get pissed at "classic designers" and "desirable licenses" getting a free pass?
The "free passes" have run out.
In hindsight, you guys should have gotten the $$$
Winnipeg, MB
Quoted from ChadH:You want to know the smartest thing John did right at the start of all this? He had everyone involved sign an NDA. Everyone.
That put the fear of talking into everyone and this helped him drag this out for has long as he has.
I'll bet there are STILL people here that are afraid to say something because they still think that the NDA they signed is still valid.
The whole NDA thing assisted this charade longer than it should have went on. Good question if the NDA assisted into a ponzi scheme.
When RAZA was announced, I think many of us assumed MG was getting done and I really didn't see the risk buying into the 2nd game at the time. I thought the heavy lifting was done already with the cabinet design and custom parts and such since RAZA shares so much with MG. I never heard a peep from any concerned MG owner so I figured everything was cool and on track.
Initially the private blog was fun but I had expected to see way more than what had been shown. The adobe video was a slap in the face because the whole world saw more than the owners had seen. There was a handful of us that were raising valid concerns and questions for a long time on the blog but we were met with duelling other owners. We also had to be careful what to say since some posts seemed to upset John. The NDA had us in a frustrating bubble and hearing reports of magical visits kept this thing going. If these games were openly discussed here on Pinside since the beginning, I can't help but wonder how things would be different and how change could have happened before it was too late but I think the NDA was another roadblock.
Quoted from benheck:If Kevin is getting away without criminal charges, no way anything would stick on John.
This isn't even a Ponzi scheme, BTW. A Ponzi scheme requires early investors to get a return on their investment (at the cost of new investors) and seeing others get this return gives new investors the CONfidence to send money.
Example: I saw my grandma get Social Security, so I'm OK with it coming out of my paycheck. (not to get political it's just a very easy example)
Nobody has gotten anything out of John, and probably never will. If you're still in this for the rarity, just remember once BBB or Kingpin gets remade the era of games appreciating past 10k is over.
What really boils my frog is if John paid himself anything more than gas station attendant wages for 4 years, he'll have pocketed more money NOT making games than I will make on the entire AMH run.
See why some of us get pissed at "classic designers" and "desirable licenses" getting a free pass?
Well it was posted by someone in a thread that a friend emailed him and asked if he could get in on AIW and John responded sure and to send money to a paypal account and how awesome the game is going to be. This sure seems like fraudulent actions to me if it is true.
Quoted from iceman44:The "free passes" have run out.
In hindsight, you guys should have gotten the $$$
They got my money! After they showed their ability to deliver a fun game that is. I was in very early on raza but bailed after a couple weeks cause it seemed like a best case scenario was another WOZ where I'd be waiting 3+ years for my game.
Quoted from smassa:They got my money! After they showed their ability to deliver a fun game that is. I was in very early on raza but bailed after a couple weeks cause it seemed like a best case scenario was another WOZ where I'd be waiting 3+ years for my game.
You guys were right.
Ben and others deserve the up front funding that a couple of the other scammers got.
It's a shame because it's not cheap to develop a game
Kind of hard to even tell how many OWNERS there are for MG. I tried to start a thread getting us MG owners together and the the thread was shut down within 5 minutes. Together we would be a force but individually we are weak. In the end the only winners will be the Lawyers, unless we all got together and split some of the legal cost. Thanks Pinside for being so much help. At least I can come here and find out what pinball will fit in my FORD FOCUS.
Quoted from Jokercyclone:I can totally understand being soured by this. The sad part is if it does sour you on pinball on a whole.
Getting scammed this big by your hobby can sour it! I was talking to a friend the other day - a pinball retailer actually - and he was shit-talking Lebowski, saying stuff like "there are copyright issues" and "I know a bunch of people getting out cuz I hear it might not happen". IMO he was just regurgitating morphed rumors from the Philgate days...but I told him - If I were to lose my money that's in on Lebowski, I'm out - I'm never buying another fucking pinball machine ever again. His eyes got wide with terror...probably realized I'm not the only one who'd say "fuck you" to pinball if I ever lost a large sum of money on one of these pre-order deals. Anyway - I still have confidence in Dutch and Lebowski - but just hearing death-knell rumors after Shit-Mask's scam and (at the time inevitable) Jflop scam stresses me out.
Quoted from Cheeks:I don't even want to look at the ToTAN or CV that I own. I have half a mind to burn them in the Zidware parking lot to show John what I really think of him
I'm not even IN on this scam but I was talking to someone yesterday about what a shit head Jpop is wanting to just burn my TOM and CV lol....ugh. I mean, not really though, I played my TOM this morning. 
But seriously, F Jpop.
Melbourne
Quoted from AtomicChuck:Kind of hard to even tell how many OWNERS there are for MG. I tried to start a thread getting us MG owners together and the the thread was shut down within 5 minutes. Together we would be a force but individually we are weak. In the end the only winners will be the Lawyers, unless we all got together and split some of the legal cost. Thanks Pinside for being so much help. At least I can come here and find out what pinball will fit in my FORD FOCUS.
There has already been information posted in this thread about attorney Zane D Smith in Chicago. Multiple people have contacted him and this seems to be the single most consolidated legal effort currently. His full contact information was posted earlier in this thread, but his office phone number is 312-245-0031. If you should choose to contact an attorney, that is where I would start. Not sure it ultimately makes sense to proceed with anything, but there could be some economies if everyone pursuing this direction went through the same place.
Just a thought.
Quoted from Cheeks:There has already been information posted in this thread about attorney Zane D Smith in Chicago. Multiple people have contacted him and this seems to be the single most consolidated legal effort currently. His full contact information was posted earlier in this thread, but his office phone number is 312-245-0031. If you should choose to contact an attorney, that is where I would start. Not sure it ultimately makes sense to proceed with anything, but there could be some economies if everyone pursuing this direction went through the same place.
Just a thought.
He posted a thread about his frustration, left his phone nunber, tried to get a group of buyers organized, and it got derailed/locked pretty quickly.
I think that's what he's referring to. I don't think he reads this entire thread (frankly the only reason I've read most of it is to summarize the key points to him).
I posted this a month ago as my interpretation of JPop's post on the blog, and in hindsight, it seems pretty accurate, especially the last line:
Quoted from RobT:Cliff's notes version:
Pinside sucks, and it's Pinside's fault that the games are not further along than they are.
I've never been sued, can't afford an attorney (can't trust them anyway) so if anyone has the balls to sue me, the project will be shut down.
I have nothing to add at all in terms of actual progress on the games. But I'm still working on them 24/7 and plan to complete them, at some unknown time in the future. My heart is in the right place, but my brain is wired different, so give me a pass.
Please bring all offers for investors to me as soon as possible as I'm out of money.
It has probably already been said, but the litigation will stop when john files bankruptcy and we will all become creditors. He isn't going to let anyone get a judgment without filing bankruptcy first so it feels like the litigation expenses are throwing good money after bad. The only thing it will do is force the bankruptcy, but without a judgment you won't have any priority over every other buyer.
Quoted from Cheeks:There has already been information posted in this thread about attorney Zane D Smith in Chicago. Multiple people have contacted him and this seems to be the single most consolidated legal effort currently. His full contact information was posted earlier in this thread, but his office phone number is 312-245-0031. If you should choose to contact an attorney, that is where I would start. Not sure it ultimately makes sense to proceed with anything, but there could be some economies if everyone pursuing this direction went through the same place.
Just a thought.
Yes, if someone did not have an attorney the one named in Chicago may be a good place to start. Laws vary by state and country, so speaking to an attorney in your jurisdiction may be advisable. The law is vast, so speaking with an attorney specializing in areas related to your case would be wise. Civil law has many limits for how long you have to file a claim based on your case so DO NOT WAIT TO TAKE ACTION.
Quoted from boo32:It has probably already been said, but the litigation will stop when john files bankruptcy and we will all become creditors. He isn't going to let anyone get a judgment without filing bankruptcy first so it feels like the litigation expenses are throwing good money after bad. The only thing it will do is force the bankruptcy, but without a judgment you won't have any priority over every other buyer.
Doesn't matter. We are unsecured creditors either way.
All John has to do is stall the lawsuits by filing general denials then it's up to you to start the discovery process and depositions.
Ready for that? That's when the lawyers get real happy
Quoted from rommy:Pinside has played a part in all this. It has helped facilitate two of the largest scams in pinball history. Something should change.
Actually, Magic Girl was first offered back on RGP. We should blame Usenet?
I don't mean to belittle what many of you are going through but the exact same thing happened in the Skit-B thread: calls that mods should somehow 'vet' anyone who wants to sell something via pinside to ensure legitimacy. Now that the castle has crumbled, people look for someone - anyone - to blame. It's human, but it won't help you get your money back (if that possibility exists). Jflop is the one to blame.
Quoted from iceman44:Doesn't matter. We are unsecured creditors either way.
All John has to do is stall the lawsuits by filing general denials then it's up to you to start the discovery process and depositions.
I hardly think John is in any position to fight out a war of attrition.
Quoted from boo32:It has probably already been said, but the litigation will stop when john files bankruptcy and we will all become creditors. He isn't going to let anyone get a judgment without filing bankruptcy first so it feels like the litigation expenses are throwing good money after bad. The only thing it will do is force the bankruptcy, but without a judgment you won't have any priority over every other buyer.
But John has zero records to even let anyone know who gets what.
John has done whatever is coming to himself and I do not have one ounce of sympathy for him or his family. I hope he ends up on the street corner peddling for handouts.
Quoted from mikeatsparkys:Pinball is still awesome.
Nice 
Getting scammed this big by your hobby can sour it! I was talking to a friend the other day - a pinball retailer actually - and he was shit-talking Lebowski, saying stuff like "there are copyright issues" and "I know a bunch of people getting out cuz I hear it might not happen". IMO he was just regurgitating morphed rumors from the Philgate days...but I told him - If I were to lose my money that's in on Lebowski, I'm out - I'm never buying another fucking pinball machine ever again. His eyes got wide with terror...probably realized I'm not the only one who'd say "fuck you" to pinball if I ever lost a large sum of money on one of these pre-order deals. Anyway - I still have confidence in Dutch and Lebowski - but just hearing death-knell rumors after Shit-Mask's scam and (at the time inevitable) Jflop scam stresses me out.
What are we gonna call the next flop? The Big Le BLOW ski
After all of the evidence as to how "hard" pinball is I don't know why you would have so much confidence in TBL. I hope it works out for you guys because I'd like one too. Afterwards.
Yeah, all this BS has me one foot out the door. My Woz is going up for sale first
Quoted from frolic:I hardly think John is in any position to fight out a war of attrition.
How do you know? Do you think he will sit back and take default judgments? I don't think so.
Doesn't cost much to file general denials and guess what, it will probably come from whatever is left of our money. How do you like that one?
And if he does take a default judgment he's thrown in the towel and has nothing. He is being sued personally, prepare to spend a bundle going after him
Quoted from iceman44:How do you know? Do you think he will sit back and take default judgments? I don't think so.
Doesn't cost much to file general denials and guess what, it will probably come from whatever is left of our money. How do you like that one?
I like it a lot if we can get his house and other assets. John is toxic and I hope he loses everything and never comes near pinball again. It's to a point that Wal Mart greeter is above what he is capable of doing.
I will be filling a fraud complaint with the FBI. I'm determined to make John's life hell with any legal action I can take. As a group we can make him miserable and he may possibly regret his actions. I think John has no remorse judging by that email two weeks ago
Quoted from benheck:What really boils my frog is if John paid himself anything more than gas station attendant wages for 4 years, he'll have pocketed more money NOT making games than I will make on the entire AMH run.
See why some of us get pissed at "classic designers" and "desirable licenses" getting a free pass?
The one difference is that you've spent the last few years building a great reputation, John has spent them destroying one. Can't put a price on that.
Quoted from iceman44:What are we gonna call the next flop? The Big Le BLOW ski
After all of the evidence as to how "hard" pinball is I don't know why you would have so much confidence in TBL. I hope it works out for you guys because I'd like one too. Afterwards.
Yeah, all this BS has me one foot out the door. My Woz is going up for sale first
Your owned in the past list is kind of funny Ice.
Quoted from iceman44:Getting scammed this big by your hobby can sour it!
This is totally right. Nothing can sour you to a subject like a scam. I expect several people are out of the hobby due to this, their spouses if nothing else will make them leave it.
Quoted from iceman44:I'm not the only one who'd say "fuck you" to pinball if I ever lost a large sum of money on one of these pre-order deals.
The pinball hobby is so much more than rich guys pre-ordering a unknown product. If you get out of the hobby for being stupid, then see ya later ! 
Quoted from hank527:I like it a lot if we can get his house and other assets. John is toxic and I hope he loses everything and never comes near pinball again. It's to a point that Wal Mart greeter is above what he is capable of doing.
I will be filling a fraud complaint with the FBI. I'm determined to make John's life hell with any legal action I can take. As a group we can make him miserable and he may possibly regret his actions. I think John has no remorse judging by that email two weeks ago
You can't get his house, his Iras or any other protected asset.
I wish you well, I'm afraid it's just going to bring more misery for you and lost money, but I get wanting to rip him apart
I'm staying in the hobby, but I'm out on pre-orderers. Giving John money without doing my due diligence is my fault, not the hobby's. Sure John is to blame for all his wrong doing, but I did give him the money. Shame on me. I can get to sleep at night knowing I'm an idiot. I'll live. How does John sleep?
Quoted from McCune:The pinball hobby is so much more than rich guys pre-ordering a unknown product. If you get out of the hobby for being stupid, then see ya later !
I love you too McCune. Now go crawl back into wherever you popped out of
What else is it? Rich guys paying you to restore games.
Yeah, thank god there are other options
Quoted from AtomicChuck:Kind of hard to even tell how many OWNERS there are for MG. I tried to start a thread getting us MG owners together and the the thread was shut down within 5 minutes.
I found the thread you are referring to:
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/buyers-of-magic-girl-only-please
It was locked and you were accused of trolling. Wow. I think you deserve an apology and the moderators should unlock your thread. You did nothing wrong.
Quoted from shakethatmachine:I'm staying in the hobby, but I'm out on pre-orderers. Giving John money without doing my due diligence is my fault, not the hobby's. Sure John is to blame for all his wrong doing, but I did give him the money. Shame on me. I can get to sleep at night knowing I'm an idiot. I'll live. How does John sleep?
Bingo. I can live with being stupid and an idiot. Shame on me
Quoted from iceman44:I love you too McCune. Now go crawl back into wherever you popped out of
No smiley face ? I am offended !
Quoted from iceman44:How do you know? Do you think he will sit back and take default judgments? I don't think so.
Doesn't cost much to file general denials and guess what, it will probably come from whatever is left of our money. How do you like that one?
And if he does take a default judgment he's thrown in the towel and has nothing. He is being sued personally, prepare to spend a bundle going after him
That's what several people said about Skit-b. Someone finally went out to Michigan and sued Kevin Kulek in small claims and won.
Personally, I'd rather go down swinging than justify doing nothing.
Quoted from jonnyo:That's what several people said about Skit-b. Someone finally went out to Michigan and sued Kevin Kulek in small claims and won.
Personally, I'd rather go down swinging than justify doing nothing.
Just know the risks and make sure you are up for it
Quoted from iceman44:You can't get his house, his Iras or any other protected asset.
I wish you well, I'm afraid it's just going to bring more misery for you and lost money, but I get wanting to rip him apart
Given that john didn't even keep a list of depositors and amounts of deposits, it is unlikely that he followed the remaining corporate formalities. This could make it possible to pierce the corporate veil and reach his assets.
Quoted from iceman44:Just know the risks and make sure you are up for it
We get it. You are advising against anyone spending any time or money to pursue legal action against John. You've now stated it at least 20 times.
Did anyone else email the info email address?
I did and here is what I received.
Hi john we will get to the bottom of what is in and what isn't. You have to understand he is not a business man and the books are a mess. If you go to 16k MG limited like the others who have already paid that price you do get dollar for dollar. If you choose to wait for what you invested in you also get dollar for dollar. If those who are squeamish want out sooner than later then there is no way to offer dollar for dollar on the 10 to 12k Mg . We are in the same boat as you and all we are trying to do is get machines in everyone who ordered ones hands and credit as much money towards them as humany possible with out putting in more 100ks of thousands of dollars. If sales go well and we open up MG claasic then perhaps we can lower that price to 10k instead of 12k and there by getting you closer to the dollar for dollar. I hope this helps. Don't hesitate to ask more questions. Cheers.
Sent from my BlackBerry 10 smartphone on the Rogers network.
Original Message
From:
Sent: Friday, May 22, 2015 6:00 AM
To: Magic Girl Info
Subject: Re: ZIDWARE UPDATE
John:
Why don't know you how much I deposited on Raza?
Why should my desposit be reduced by 50%?
Sent from my iPhone
On May 22, 2015, at 1:20 AM, Magic Girl Info <[email protected]> wrote:
Dear Chris,
I am excited to present to you the following attachments which will explain to you where we stand now and where we are going in the future.
I apologize for the late timing of these however once you read them you will understand why it was best to get everything finalized before they were presented to you. I appreciate everyone who believed in me and I hope together we can finally bring the magic to life.
Best Personal Regards,
John Popadiuk
Quoted from boo32:Given that john didn't even keep a list of depositors and amounts of deposits, it is unlikely that he followed the remaining corporate formalities. This could make it possible to pierce the corporate veil and reach his assets.
I agree. Very good chance. That's why he can't take default judgments
I would be terrified of personal liability if I were him.
Maybe somehow he thought he was running out the statute of limitations
Quoted from ChadH:We get it. You are advising against anyone spending any time or money to pursue legal action against John. You've now stated it at least 20 times.
Here is number 21. I don't care what you do
I simply suggest people gather all the facts before they make a decision.
You will be able to do that shortly, with more facts and what else is going on around the whole situation. Like i said, I think people will be positively surprised.
At least the people who have $$$ at risk, the rubberneckers and burn it to the ground people will always be here to cheer that on. 
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