Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Report: Bilzerian, one-time Spanos associate, stashed bucks offshore

Spanos involved in takeover with him before Bilzerian went to prison

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists has released a devastating study of offshore tax havens, indicating that as much as $32 trillion -- the size of the U.S. and Japanese economies combined -- may be stashed in secrecy and tax havens around the world. Among the few names that have been released thus far is that of one-time corporate raider Paul Bilzerian. In 1989, he was convicted of of conspiracy, making false statements, and securities and law violations. He was sentenced to four years in prison and spent a little more than a year there. He filed for bankruptcy twice, but went to prison a second time in the early 2000s for failure to disclose his assets to the bankruptcy court. The Securities and Exchange Commission had contended that Bilzerian transferred assets to trusts and shell corporations -- key steps in many offshore stashing strategies.

As I reported in my Union-Tribune column, in 1987 Chargers owner Alex Spanos was introduced to Bilzerian. The next year, Spanos joined a Bilzerian raid on Singer Co. Along with people such as the late Edward DeBartolo Sr., the racetrack czar, and his son Edward DeBartolo Jr., the senior Spanos helped finance the takeover. "I love the acquisition business," Spanos told me in 1988. "Paul [Bilzerian] represents me totally." At the time, the Securities and Exchange Commission was investigating the deal; Spanos said the investigation did not deter him. The senior DeBartolo has often been linked to organized crime. The book "Interference: How Organized Crime Influences Professional Football" devotes seven pages to the subject. But Spanos told me, "He is a reputable person, a fine gentleman." Later, the SEC leveled charges against Bilzerian and the elder DeBartolo, who settled without admitting or denying the charges. Spanos was not charged, although at one point there were only two people left on the Singer board, and he was one of them.

Later, Edward "Eddie" DeBartolo Jr., then owner of the San Francisco 49ers, pleaded guilty to not reporting a $400,000 bribe he paid to a former governor of Louisiana to get a riverboat gambling license. As a result, the junior DeBartolo had to forfeit ownership of the team to another member of the DeBartolo family, his sister.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

Change is constant in our fisheries

Yellowfin still biting well

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists has released a devastating study of offshore tax havens, indicating that as much as $32 trillion -- the size of the U.S. and Japanese economies combined -- may be stashed in secrecy and tax havens around the world. Among the few names that have been released thus far is that of one-time corporate raider Paul Bilzerian. In 1989, he was convicted of of conspiracy, making false statements, and securities and law violations. He was sentenced to four years in prison and spent a little more than a year there. He filed for bankruptcy twice, but went to prison a second time in the early 2000s for failure to disclose his assets to the bankruptcy court. The Securities and Exchange Commission had contended that Bilzerian transferred assets to trusts and shell corporations -- key steps in many offshore stashing strategies.

As I reported in my Union-Tribune column, in 1987 Chargers owner Alex Spanos was introduced to Bilzerian. The next year, Spanos joined a Bilzerian raid on Singer Co. Along with people such as the late Edward DeBartolo Sr., the racetrack czar, and his son Edward DeBartolo Jr., the senior Spanos helped finance the takeover. "I love the acquisition business," Spanos told me in 1988. "Paul [Bilzerian] represents me totally." At the time, the Securities and Exchange Commission was investigating the deal; Spanos said the investigation did not deter him. The senior DeBartolo has often been linked to organized crime. The book "Interference: How Organized Crime Influences Professional Football" devotes seven pages to the subject. But Spanos told me, "He is a reputable person, a fine gentleman." Later, the SEC leveled charges against Bilzerian and the elder DeBartolo, who settled without admitting or denying the charges. Spanos was not charged, although at one point there were only two people left on the Singer board, and he was one of them.

Later, Edward "Eddie" DeBartolo Jr., then owner of the San Francisco 49ers, pleaded guilty to not reporting a $400,000 bribe he paid to a former governor of Louisiana to get a riverboat gambling license. As a result, the junior DeBartolo had to forfeit ownership of the team to another member of the DeBartolo family, his sister.

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Wall Street Journal Puffs Up Sam Wyly, Ignoring Offshore Tax Shenanigans Uncovered by Congressional Investigators

Next Article

San Diego, haven for pyramids

Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader