Walter Williams already has lost thousands of dollars and the trust of friends and family.
After he goes to the Federal Court Building in Augusta on Wednesday, his freedom will be gone, too.
More than three months after he admitted his crimes, the Augusta insurance agent and business owner will be sentenced. He is facing more than five years in prison under federal sentencing guidelines, but prosecutors are arguing for a lengthier sentence based on Williams' long-term pattern of "fraud and deception."
For 17 years, Williams operated a scheme to steal money from those closest to him -- family members, fellow churchgoers and longtime friends -- with promises that he would invest it for a healthy return.
But he didn't. The $1.7 million he collected from the 16 individuals affected by this crime is now gone. Spent, Williams said in federal court, on "bills" or squandered in poker tournaments, as others have claimed.
LAMAR LEROY
After more than 40 years of friendship, Lamar Leroy thought he knew Williams.
He had sung duets in church with Williams' wife. He had shared dinners at their house.
So, when Williams called and began apologizing, Leroy thought his friend had made some bad investments, not robbed him blind.
"At that time he had not told me he had stole the money," Leroy said. "I even told the lawyer, 'Listen, this guy's been a good friend of mine for years,' and I said I'll be glad to speak on his character."
That call was the last time the two men spoke to each other.
Leroy invested $60,000 with Williams. Counting five years of interest, he estimates that he lost more than $100,000.
Leroy said Williams was always a conservative spender, which makes the amount of money he stole -- about $1.7 million -- all the more curious.
Since his arrest, many, including a former gambling buddy, have come forward to talk about Williams' penchant for poker. But Leroy said Williams never discussed gambling.
"He was the type of person if gas went up to $2 a gallon, he'd trade his car in to get one with better gas mileage," Leroy said. "It was very obvious I didn't know him as well as I thought I did."
Leroy said he believes Williams is hiding the money he stole. He blames the FBI for not investigating Williams' wife, who was also his office manager, and for not scrutinizing his finances.
Despite the amount of money he has lost, Leroy said it will not affect his lifestyle. He owns two Hardee's restaurant franchises in Evans and Lincolnton, Ga., and says he will be fine. But it's money that he could be giving to his children and grandchildren.
"I've lost money on the stock market before, but I've never been robbed by a friend," Leroy said.
BOB EDMUNDS
Bob Edmunds didn't plan on having to work odd jobs when he retired. But he didn't plan on Williams stealing his retirement either.
Edmunds, who worked in the radiology department at Dwight D. Eisenhower Army Medical Center for more than 30 years, has lost thousands of dollars.
He trusted Williams, in part, because his father, brother and good friend Leroy all had let Williams manage their money.
Edmunds said he contacted Williams in 2005 about investing. Williams visited him at his home, and the two men spent a few hours together. They talked about church, and Edmunds said he was impressed by how nice Williams appeared. He looks back now and realizes how wrong he was.
"I guess what upsets me worse than anything in the whole deal is that he intentionally came up there to steal my money," he said. "He knew when he left Augusta that day ... he was coming to steal money from me."
Williams brought Edmunds a contract, which turned out to be a fake -- just like his story of where the money would go. Edmunds began trying to track down his money in 2009. He called the company on the letterhead, Universal Settlements, and was told it was fake. Every time Edmunds tried to call Williams, Williams said he was in the Bahamas, or Nassau, never in Augusta. When he finally was able to catch Williams or his wife, Diane, he was told he wouldn't hear anything about the money until the end of the seven-year investment.
"In my heart I knew something was wrong last January, a year ago," he said.
Edmunds ended up losing about $45,000. His father was hit much worse -- more than $309,000.
Now, Edmunds works at Lowe's. He also picks up cars bought at out-of-state auctions and drives them back to Augusta for local dealers. During an interview in April, he was in the process of moving out of his townhome to Lincolnton. His dresser sat in the hallway ready to be hauled out of the door. Edmunds said it's been difficult to find work, and disheartening.
"It's a different kind of retirement than I anticipated," he said.
JAMES LAWRENCE GRIFFITH
James Lawrence Griffith doesn't believe in handouts. All his life, Griffith and his wife, Alice, both 81 years old, worked low-paying jobs and saved every cent in the hopes of being self-sufficient in their twilight years.
Now they depend on Social Security to get by. Their savings of almost $400,000 is gone.
His savings, his life, were taken from him by Williams.
"I was raised to work hard, and so was my wife," said Griffith, fighting back tears. "We just want to take care of ourselves, and now we need medicine that we can't afford."
In 1993, Williams offered to invest $100,000 of Griffith's savings into annuities that his firm would manage. Over the course of several years, Griffith put more money into the investments -- eventually reaching about $357,000. Williams would make the trip to Athens, Ga., himself to pick up the checks.
Sometimes Williams' wife, who is Griffith's cousin, would tag along.
Griffith, a former pastor who trusted Williams in part because of their talks about God, didn't suspect anything was wrong until the day he got a letter from the FBI outlining the charges against Williams.
"That scared the daylights out of me because I didn't know anything," he said. "My mind went through the ceiling. I would have never dreamed Walt Williams would have done me that way."
Today, Griffith and his wife live in Tennessee to be near their daughter.
He recently had surgery to repair a blockage in his stomach and his right thigh, but he said he isn't going to let his health problems keep him from being in Augusta to see Williams sentenced.
"This has devastated the family," he said. "If there is any word in the dictionary that is stronger than devastated, then I guess that would apply."
PATRICIA BREWER
Patricia Brewer can't talk about what Williams did to her, and she doesn't want to see him in court.
Brewer, 77, had spent months going to hearings after her 17-year-old grandson was murdered in Barnwell, S.C., according to her daughter Sue Brewer.
That memory is too fresh. And so is the one in which Williams visited to sympathize -- and even pray with her -- by talking about the death of his son in a car wreck. When family members questioned Patricia Brewer about whether she should trust Williams enough to invest about $30,000 with him, that encounter weighed heavily on her mind, Sue Brewer said.
"She said, 'Oh sure, I've known him for a long time, and he was telling me that his son was killed.' "
Patricia Brewer did not want to be interviewed about the Williams case but did approve of her daughter talking about the experience.
A single mother for most of her life, Patricia Brewer raised five children by herself. She married right out of high school then divorced and took a job at Augusta Christian's day care and nursery. When it closed, she began a small day care operation out of her home to pay the bills and help take care of her mother, who had Alzheimer's disease.
She met Williams while she was still at Augusta Christian. He had visited the business and sold many of the employees life insurance policies.
"He came across as this honest, working, good Christian man," Sue Brewer said.
Now, Patricia Brewer and her daughter are just trying to get by. Sue Brewer is retired from Fort Gordon for health reasons after working as an executive assistant for 34 years. Her mother is "living off her faith" and help from her children.
"He wasn't promising her tons of money," she said. "It was just something to live on."
Comments
Well, I see where his strong professed 'Christian' values helped him dupe other folks that think the God Squad can be trusted due to their 'faith.'
James and Alice Griffith's story really hurts the most. Here we have people that worked hard, saved, and planned so that they could take it easy in later years only to have it all wiped away by a dishonest swindle.
Sad.
Brad
If it sounds too good to be true, it is.
And this is NOT a bad reflection on Christianity -- that was just a tool used by Williams, who would have do the same thing as a Buddhist if he lived in a Buddhist country.
To the first comment, what does your comment have to do with this story. Somebody steals money from friends and family and you talk about Obama and healthcare, try next time to stay on topic
Never put all your eggs in one basket and never count your chickens before they are hatched.
Sorry to all the investors who lost money to Williams and his schemes.
Ole Walter Williams stealing the wealth from others, a backstabber who will have to be supported in prison by my tax dollars. He probably is hiding money he stole. People like him think it is the American way to steal from others and keep their money. He is just another scumbag of a criminal who needs to be ran out of this country. He probably stole a lot more money and the law needs to look into it the lowlife crook thinks he and his family are 'entitled' and that's their nature to steal! steal! steal! Stay away from that man.
"Be sure your sins will find you out." You reap what you sow.
I feel bad for these people. It seems his wife should have been charged also, since she was his office manager. Maybe the victims and law enforcement should watch how his wife lives after Williams goes to jail.
It may be a negative character trait of mine, but I would never trust anyone that much. On a sideline, giving money to children and grandchildren can make them lazy and irresponsible. Doing things for others that they can (and should) do for themselves weakens them. So don't be downcast about not having money to leave behind when you die. And there is certainly no U-Haul behind your hearse.
This is so sad for these. I pray for their restoration as God can get their money back for them. If it sounds to good to be true is man's concept not Gods. I have made money on things that sounded too good to be true but they were true and worked fine. Spreading your assets 10 ways is always a good move. One good guy can more than offset the one crook you might have. This man may not have been a Christian because if he was, the Holy Spirit would have been screeming at him 24/7 to stop doing what he was doing. If we are a Christian, the Spirit of Christ is living in us and we should have trouble holding a penny that belongs to another. We should be living in extreme honesty and always putting others first. When we focus on Christ and others we hardly ever have to pray for our own needs as those needs just seem to get met.
Greed always makes you poorer. Anything that is "risk free" is for the person taking the money.
Never trust others with your money.
Brad Owens, shame on you for using this man's church connection to take a dig at Christianity. It could have easily been some other civic club. Sin abounds everywhere, yes even in a church. Proud to be a God Squad Member!
Justus you seem to admire the way this scumbag STOLE from friends....... ""Or did he rely on something intangible and cleverly exploited within the community?""...................can't imagine why.
Shame on him.
Exploiting people through their religon.A great southern tradition.
"He loves you and he needs money"
I work for an well known investment company...there are reputable people out there but you must interview them talk to other people who work with the company.
This guy just made my job harder. It takes a lot to win the trust of people especially when it comes to their livelyhood.
"How were these people so easily duked"- it's because people tried to warn them but it fell on death ears, Justus.
"This man may not have been a Christian"- hey, ya THINK???
"Or did he rely on something intangible and cleverly exploited within the community?"
You know, like Charles Walker did.
scoopdedoop64Sunday, Jul. 11 9:08 AMr Brad Owens, shame on you for using this man's church connection to take a dig at Christianity. It could have easily been some other civic club.
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But it wasn't. It was via his church and these people's blind faith in anything associated with their "faith."
I was offered a investment deal by a friend several years ago, 3% interest per month. It sounded too good to be true, so I declined the offer. Several Augusta people had already invested in this particular investment, but I never heard anything about this scam. Nothing from law enforcement or any media reports. Some of these people had invested thousands. Not sure how this scam could have not been reported unless the people were so embarrassed about being fooled. The person heading up this scam was also a church goer and people trusted him.
The last suit does not have any pockets - not even Walter Williams'. His Maker will be the final Judge. And I feel utter sadness for all those folks that this criminal duped out of their savings.
This is truly a sad story. Not much difference in a strong arm robbery and a confidence scheme. One difference is I can shoot the SOB that is robbing me or my home, but if a victim of Williams were to do the same the DA would be bringing murder charges against the victim.
I don't know the people involved, but it seems that Williams family or staff (if more than his wife) had to know about these schemes. She needs to do some time "up river" for at least aiding in the scheme or helping to cover it up. This is the same for these high profile robbers like Madoff. His family and staff knew what was going on. Anything that is perpetuated over many years is known to those working for the organization.
Which leads to my new recommended sentencing law: When a criminal enterprise has many victims as this crime did, the sentence should be minimally the length of time that the scam endured. Therefore, 17 years, no parole, and hard time, very hard time would be sufficient in this case.
This is truly a sad story. Not much difference in a strong arm robbery and a confidence scheme. One difference is I can shoot the SOB that is robbing me or my home, but if a victim of Williams were to do the same the DA would be bringing murder charges against the victim.
I don't know the people involved, but it seems that Williams family or staff (if more than his wife) had to know about these schemes. She needs to do some time "up river" for at least aiding in the scheme or helping to cover it up. This is the same for these high profile robbers like Madoff. His family and staff knew what was going on. Anything that is perpetuated over many years is known to those working for the organization.
Which leads to my new recommended sentencing law: When a criminal enterprise has many victims as this crime did, the sentence should be minimally the length of time that the scam endured. Therefore, 17 years, no parole, and hard time, very hard time would be sufficient in this case.
This is a sad story; I hope he get the punishment he deserves. A wolf in sheep's clothing.
The comment by iletukmow is right on the mark."Exploiting people through their religon.A great southern tradition." The only television evangelists who do not beg for money are tho local churches on the network channels on Sunday morning.
I as a relative to Walter and Diane was raised to believe they were the Christian among Christians. He did take from his family, too bad it can't be proved due to their deaths. I hope he gets a longer term in prison and like many others, the blind didn't lead the blind... Diane should also be investigated
I betcha' most or all of the people duped by Williams are older folks. They tend to be faithful to their friends and are quicker to trust. Not a bad thing, as there is so much hate in the world, but we just need to be more careful of the " to good to be true " line. God Bless the ones that Williams cheated. The Williams guy ( and his family ) work of art that he is, is the real looser . He will have a room with NO view for years to come and the family will live with the shame.
I know Lamar and he would not be in the category of "older folks" being taken advantage of. He also believes in hard work to get ahead as that is what he has always done. He is also someone that would trust and try to help his friends if he truly believed it was a worthy investment to put "some " of his money but definitely not "all". I would guess his children and grandchildren have also been raised to work hard. They are not just waiting for things to fall in their lap. Too bad people like Williams are out there setting a bad example for those of us that make an honest living out of helping people plan for their future.
Yes, how sad that the close family members that he scamed along with his friends most were older. For I know this because my Dad, his Uncle and my Aunt, his Aunt loved and trusted him until he also took from his own Aunt and I will never know about my own Dad for they are both gone. I am glad they aren't here to witness that he was never what he made all of us all believe. The fancy house, golf course and all the trips to gamble everyone's hard earned money away for his own means to live a lavish life. It makes me sad for all the people that he took there savings and hard earned money. May in his darkness of a cell,that he thinks of all of us that he hurt, destroyed and lied too all his life. Wish I could be there in court on Wednesday, but I can't. Please Judge give him the most and longest judgment possible. My thoughts will be with his son's for they are the one's I love and hope God will give the strength to overcome their own shame of him. My prayers are with them....
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