You are not going to believe this one. Last Tuesday, March 5, the office of state Attorney General Keith Ellison put out a press release under the headline,
Attorney General’s Office sues charities over $2 million in misused assets.
The AG reports,
Today, Attorney General Ellison’s Office announced it has filed a lawsuit against Les Jolies School of Dance, Real Believers Faith Center, their founders, Sharon Cook and her husband Larry Cook, and other officers of both charities for multiple egregious violations of Minnesota nonprofit law, including misusing over $2 million in charitable assets to fund lavish lifestyles, luxury travel, and designer goods while pretending to serve their communities.
The punchline,
One such endeavor involves a 2022 lease and licensing agreement that Larry Cook entered into on behalf of Real Believers for a property at 1120 W. Broadway Ave. in Minneapolis containing a gas station/convenience store.
The capper, from page 23 of the AG’s lawsuit,
“The Lion’s Den.” I’m not making any of this up. KSTP-5 TV reported back in November 2022,
A troubled gas station in North Minneapolis with a history of crime is seeing positive outcomes after a nearby church bought the property one month ago.
“Real Believers Faith Center” now owns the Marathon Gas Station on West Broadway. This area has been a problem spot for drugs and crime.
When Bishop Larry Cook of Real Believers Faith Center wasn’t in church, he would sit outside of Marathon Gas Station to monitor the area.
Except the AG now reports the church did not, in fact, buy the station.
The AG’s lawsuit against the Cooks, their nonprofit entities, and other individuals is a civil matter. No criminal charges have been filed. The allegations appear to involve self-dealing and the conversion of nonprofit revenues into private corporate profits.
KSTP’s most recent story,
‘Exploited as personal piggy banks’: Minneapolis nonprofits sued over misuse of charitable funds
KSTP indicates that the Cooks did not provide a response to their inquiries.