Creditors question Alamo about assets but he is uncooperative
Southwest Times Record
July 29, 1992
By Dave Hughes
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Creditors of Tony Alamo had their first chance Tuesday to question him about his assets and evangelical empire but they found it hard to pin him down.
Attorneys for former Alamo followers, who successfully sued Alamo in 1990, and for the Department of Labor questioned Alamo for about three hours Tuesday morning. The afternoon session never began after Alamo refused to answer anymore questions and walked out of the creditors’ hearing.
The hearing was presided over by a federal trustee after Alamo filed for protection of the bankruptcy court a month ago while he reorganized his debts. The reorganization is to help him satisfy a consent judgment by which he agreed to pay $5 million to the labor department by mid-1994.
To pay off the $5 million debt, Alamo incorporated Tony Alamo Enterprises Inc. and said Tuesday he plans to resume manufacturing trendy denim jackets and put together a Christmas catalog for Pepsico Inc. He said he had contracts with Pepsico Inc., Yamaha, Spalding and other major companies in connection with the catalog. However, when attorney Judy Henry, who represented six former Alamo followers, who are creditors named Miller, asked him to identify the contracts, Alamo never answered.
During questioning by Henry, Alamo said he was not an officer in and had no control over the Tony and Susan Alamo Foundation. After his wife, Susan, died in 1982, he said he turned the foundation over to “the people.” He said he didn’t know who was in charge.
He gave the same answer to questions about the Music Square Church, 20th Century Holiness Tabernacle and about his Tony Alamo defense fund.
Federal court rulings have said those were actually Alamo’s alter egos. He is appealing that ruling but Henry said that appeal has been rejected.
Also during the hearing, Alamo admitted to having at least six aliases and three social security numbers.
The afternoon session never began. As Henry was about to resume questioning Alamo, Dickstein objected. He said he didn’t like the fact he was given no standing in the hearing to protect Alamo in the criminal and civil actions against his client.
Dickstein then announced Alamo would answer no more questions. The hearing was called off and the trustee announced that the hearing would resume at 9 a.m. Aug. 21.