THE KOEHLER and LANE CONSPIRACY
James C. Koehler and Dennis Lane have been given free reign over the citizens of Ohio. The court system has allowed them to steal anything they see fit. Their victims have been numerous. Their purse has been large. These two men are living proof that crime pays in Flag City U.S.A.
In January 1988, James C. Koehler and Dennis Lane entered into an agreement with Kevin and Edward Retttig. Koehler and Lane were to purchase the Ohio Tool and Surplus business from the Rettigs for $214,000.00. Attorney Scott O'Brien represented the Rettigs in this agreement. On or about February 1, 1988 Koehler and Lane took possession of the business before the agreement was signed. Koehler and Lane operated the business paying only $10,000.00. In August of 1988, the Rettigs filed suit against Koehler and Lane for recession of the contract of sale and money damages. On October 17, 1988 the parties entered into a settlement agreement. However, Koehler and Lane never honored the settlement. On January 8, 1989, Rettigs filed suit against Koehler and Lane to collect money per the settlement agreement. Koehler and Lane again agreement to honor the settlement on February 7, 1989. By October 10, 1989, Judge Reinbolt order Koehler and Lane to comply with the settlement agreement they entered into. Judge Reinbolt ordered the finalization of this settlement within two weeks or the disagreement would go to trial on February 22nd. On February 22nd the trial was continued for 90 days. An order was filed on May 14, 1990 which sought Will Shinew to perform the duties of the settlement agreement and money judgement for $52,372.54. However, on May 20, 1990 the case was dismissed. The Rettigs filed an appeal with the Court of Appeals who overturned the dismissal on or about August 27, 1992. Four years from the original contract to sell the Ohio Tool & Surplus business for $214,000.00, the Rettigs have collected $10,000.00, suffered numerous court costs. The final blow came when the Ohio Supreme Court granted an appeal by Koehler and Lane.
Koehler and Lane gained possession of a business which they agreed was worth $214,000.00 for the amazing price of $10,000.00. The Rettigs lost over $200,000.00 from the sale of the business, not including the legal fees incurred. Koehler and Lane purposely and knowingly defrauded and stole a successful business from the Rettigs. Koehler and Lane paid for the business, but who did they pay and what was the cost? How much does it cost to buy a judge? However, this is not the last of the Koehler-Lane conspiracies to steal from the Rettigs.
On December 19, 1987, Bill Johns entered into a purchase agreement with the Rettigs to buy the Army Navy Store at 830 N. Main Street, Findlay. The agreement provided that Johns pay $18,441.00 for the inventory only. Payments were to be $960.50 monthly. The inventory was collateral for the business purchase contract. After several months, Johns had failed to make any payments. The Rettigs agreed to restructure agreement in order to help Johns. Again, Johns failed to honor the agreement. Unknown to the Rettigs, Johns entered into an agreement with David Koehler. Koehler invested into the business. He also filed UCC's for his interest in the business with the inventory as collateral. However, the Rettigs had already claimed the inventory as collateral in the original agreement with Johns. This inventory had never been paid for by Johns as agreed in December 1987. Having never collected any payment for the inventory, the Rettigs removed the merchandise, inventoried it and stored it. At the time of the merchandise repossession, Johns was in arrears for $4,000.00 in back rent, not including any non-payment for the merchandise. Koehler filed suit in October, 1991 against the Rettigs for removing the merchandise. Koehler was awarded $105,000.00 for inventory which the Rettigs still owned and was appraised for $10,000.00. Koehler made a $95,000.00 profit for merchandise he never owned. Johns, on the other hand, filed bankruptcy in late 1990 or early 1991.
Adding to this conspiracy is Patterson Higgins. Patterson Higgins had been hired by the Rettigs to answer Koehler's lawsuit. Higgins entered into an agreement without the knowledge of the Rettigs. In this agreement Higgins stipulated that the Rettigs had converted the property. This agreement is the cause for the huge judgement of $105,000.00. The stipulation also quashed any additional legal remedies for the Rettigs. The Rettigs, of course, fired Higgins. The Rettigs hired another attorney to file a 60B motion. This motion asked for a default judgement for the original agreement. The motion was denied. The Appellate Court upheld the decision.
Again the Rettigs were robbed by the Koehlers and permitted to do so by the very court system that was established to protect citizens. However, the Rettigs are not the only victims.
In a letter dated April 22, 1998 to the Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission from attorney John C. Sausser, the conspiracy against Peter and Mary Brandman is layed out. The letter is as follows:
COMMISSION MEMBERS:
As a concerned citizen of Findlay, Oh., I am filing a general complaint under the Organized Crime statue of Ohio Revised Code Sec. 177.01 et seq.
The complaint involved a local successful business man and his wife who had developed the Brandman Corp. into a going business with net assets in excess of two million dollars. They had also accumulated personal wealth of nearly two million dollars.
Five conspirators got control of the corporation bled it and by intimidation got the Brandmans to turnover their personal wealth to the corporation and then embezzled it.
They were aided and abetted knowingly or unknowingly by the lawyers and banks. There were at least eight lawsuits in the process of litigation, when the attorney for the chief conspirator, Dennis Lane, offered a compromise settlement of $940,000, saying the money would be immediately made available. After two years of false promises and continued lies and false allegations the parties liquidated what they could and divided what was available mostly in the hands of the conspirators.
Mr. Brandman has died and Mrs. Brandman has had one or more strokes. She is in a home on Medicaid. I am enclosing most of the civil complaint against the five conspirators which is the history of the actions by the defendants.
I am also enclosing the judgment entry which winds up most of the civil actions in these cases.
I have at my office thousands of pages of complaints, depositions and items of investigation which includes bank information and items voluntarily provided.
If the commission is interested in pursuing this matter, the local sheriff's office have made intensive investigation which the Hancock County prosecutor prevented coming to fruition. Both his investigation and our involvement show a "PATTERN OF CORRUPT ACTIVITY" extending over several years.
John C. Sausser, Attorney At Law
This story of the corruption activity by James C. Koehler and Dennis Lane is not complete. The next issue of "The Black Swamp Chronicles" will give additional information which shows a pattern of corrupt activity by Koehler and Lane. The money these men have accumulated allows them to purchase your judicial system. Are you, a citizen of Ohio, going to allow your friends and neighbors to be their next victim?