Slashdot Mirror
Wild Abuse Allegations Taint Indiegogo Helmet Maker Skully (digitaltrends.com)
Skully raised $2.4 million on Indiegogo in 2014 to manufacture motorcycle helmets with built-in Augmented Reality. Now they're filing for bankruptcy, and informing customers that refunds are unlikely on their $1,500 pre-ordered helmets. But a lawsuit filed by Skully bookkeeper Isabelle Faithhauer "claims the Wellers used the funds raised by the Indiegogo campaign and a secondary $11 million round of funding in 2015 as their personal 'piggy banks' to buy several motorcycles, two Dodge Vipers, groceries, and so on," according to a Digital Trends article shared by KingGypsy:
The Wellers took trips to Bermuda and Hawaii using company funds, she said, went to strip clubs, rented a Lamborghini, and paid for personal housekeeping services on the company credit card, as well as paying out funds ranging from $500 to $80,000. Lastly, she claims that the Wellers asked her to fudge the books to obscure the expenses. Faithhauer claims that when accountants came calling with questions about the expenses, she was up front about what was going on. She says that when she took a pre-approved vacation to Disneyland in December of 2015, she was fired upon her return and offered a severance package, which the suit calls "hush money." She declined the offer.
"Following her termination at Skully, Faithhauer claims that when she found a new job, her new employer contacted the Wellers at Skully and were told she could not be trusted with confidential information. She was fired from that job as well."
"Following her termination at Skully, Faithhauer claims that when she found a new job, her new employer contacted the Wellers at Skully and were told she could not be trusted with confidential information. She was fired from that job as well."
She did the right thing and she's being punished for it. Does she have a GoFundMe page?
This kind of stuff seems to be rampant in business, just look at the Wolf of Wall Street, etc. Rampant corruption is a sign of a failing society. If you promise me a helmet for your $1500, that money had better be spent on developing the helmet, not hookers and blow. I understand that crowdfunding is risky, but it should only be risky because they're developing new technology, not because it's just one big lie. Failing to develop the technology is a legitimate risk, but blowing the money is criminal.
"I have never let my schooling interfere with my education." - Mark Twain
When you're the only one confused, maybe it's a sign that the problem is you. The only way it could be more explanatory is if it was
(Wild Abuse) Allegations Taint Helmet (a thing you wear on your head) Maker (someone who constructs (builds or assembles) things) Skully (the name of the company (organization of people (plural of person))) who used Indiegogo (a crowd-funding (collecting money from various people to achieve a goal, in return for specific rewards if said goal is achieved) website (a data file on the internet, typically in HTML (Hyper Text Markup Language) format (a specification (rules (instructions)) used to structure text (letters (lines and curves arranged in a particular way) grouped into words by punctuation (little dots and squiggles) and white space (empty space not containing letters or punctuation)) for presentation (display) by a computer (electronic device)))) to Raise Money (a medium of exchange with value agreed upon by all people participants in the exchange of goods or services)
I hope that helps (sarcasm) you.
Crowdfunding is not an investment, it is pre-purchasing a product that isn't in production, that is all it is. The buyers have no management, or ownership, control of the company. If a company has such a great idea then they can seek funding through selling shares of ownership. The investors, as owners, they can demand accountability from the other owners.
Crowdfunding is nothing but giving money to a person in the hope of a product at some future time. Investing is ownership.