Bob Minton
Robert Minton | |
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Lisa McPherson trust |
Robert Schenk Minton (October 1946 – January 20, 2010) was a millionaire who helped finance lawsuits against the Church of Scientology.
Criticism of Scientology
Minton became a critic of
Minton spent over $10 million fighting Scientology.
Minton also gave money to a number of other church critics, including three people whom Scientology accuses of infringement of its copyrights.[6] Minton also distributed $25,000 or $30,000 to a Swiss ex-Scientologist called Jean-Luc Barbier, who was suing the cult, and gave $250,000 to a French attorney. He also participated in demonstrations in front of the Boston Headquarters of the Church of Scientology near his Beacon Hill home.
After reports by Scientology alleging fraud in his Nigerian businesses, Minton successfully sued two German Scientology entities and a spokeswoman for a permanent injunction preventing them from repeating the libel.[7][8] The decision was confirmed on appeal.[9][10]
Lisa McPherson Trust
In 1999, Minton founded the
The trust operated out of
In 2000, Minton was the first recipient of the "Alternative Charlemagne Award" from the European-American Citizens Committee for Human Rights and Religious Freedom.[12][13][14]
In 2001, for his work with LMT, Bob Minton received the Leo J. Ryan Award from the
Hubbard parody film
Minton produced and funded the film The Profit, costing him about $2.5 million. The film was a presented as a work of fiction, meant to educate the public about cults and con men, but was widely seen as a parody of the Church of Scientology and its founder, L. Ron Hubbard.[15][16]
Opposition from Scientology
In his 2022 book A Billion Years: My Escape From a Life in the Highest Ranks of Scientology, Mike Rinder writes how he and Marty Rathbun were pressured daily by David Miscavige to do anything and everything to "Stop Minton". Miscavige even blamed them for failure to stop Minton from moving to Clearwater in the first place. They brought in a number of private investigators and began a massive international campaign to silence Minton, to which funding was no barrier.[17]
The main private investigator employed by the church was Dave Lubow, who flew all over the country contacting Minton's family, friends and associates, picketing Minton's other businesses, and even got his Swiss bank account frozen. They also arranged to goad Minton into swatting at a Scientologist by getting right up into his face and yelling at him; the swat of Minton's picket sign and the overdramatic 'fall' of the victim got him arrested. Although he was acquitted, Scientology thereafter called Minton a criminal who had been arrested for a violent assault.[17]
In October 2009, Rinder and Rathbun told the
Minton switches sides
Minton changed his testimony in the McPherson case after a Scientology probe into his financial affairs.[4] Minton was repeatedly ordered to attend depositions and questioned by Scientology lawyers about his alleged financial dealings.[4] In addition, years later, former church officials detailed how they had investigated Minton, recording their conversations with him, obtaining his phone records and bank records, and finding information he was "worried about".[18][19]
Critics of Scientology believe that Minton was blackmailed by the Church of Scientology.[4] On March 16, 2002, Minton called Mike Rinder and on April 6 of that year they met. [4] At that meeting Minton told Rinder that there were lies told in the case and he feared Scientology would uncover those lies in court and he would be sent to jail for perjury.[4]
I don't want my life defined by Scientology anymore. I just want some peace.
— Bob Minton[4]
During an April 20, 2002, hearing in the Lisa McPherson wrongful death lawsuit against the Church of Scientology, Minton spoke against Ken Dandar, the attorney representing McPherson's family.[20] In a 26-page affidavit, Minton stated that Tampa attorney Ken Dandar asked him to lie, drew up false court records for him to sign and urged him to generate bad publicity for the Church of Scientology to prejudice potential jurors in the McPherson wrongful death case as Scientology tried to get the wrongful death case dismissed on grounds of serious misconduct by Ken Dandar and his client.[21] Minton's affidavit gave new details about how involved Minton was in the wrongful death case from the start, stating that he gave Dandar more than $2 million to finance the case and paying witnesses to testify against the church.[21] Dandar took the witness stand to explain the origin of Swiss bank checks totaling $750,000 that Minton allegedly gave him.[21] Minton also testified about two financial arrangements in which $800,000 of his money was transferred from Europe to the Lisa McPherson Trust and that he had kept a portion of that money because he wanted to hide the source of the Trust's funding from the Church of Scientology.[22]
Despite the allegations the presiding judge declined to remove attorney Dandar from the case, stating that she did not believe Minton's testimony, and that he had lied in an attempt to escape paying income taxes.[23] Six months before she had already remarked that it was irrelevant how much money Minton had put into the case.[24]
In August 2009, John Fashanu, who in 2000 accused Minton and Ibrahim Babangida of stealing money from Nigeria,[25] apologized, saying, "I can say it again and again, that there was nothing like debt buy-back or any billions stacked away in any account anywhere."[26] In 2000, Minton said that Fashanu was given false information by the Church of Scientology to attack him.[27][28][29]
Death
Minton died in Clonbur, Ireland of a heart ailment on January 20, 2010, at the age of 63. His funeral was held on the following Monday, at St. Mary of the Rosary Church, Cong, County Mayo, Ireland. He is buried in Lisloughrey Cemetery.[30][31]
References
- ^ Marbella, Jean (January 19, 2000). "A crusader sees evil in Fla. city; Scientology: A millionaire opens a center in Clearwater, Fla., a hub of the religion, to battle what he calls a dangerous cult". The Baltimore Sun.
- Lermanet.
- ^ A & E Investigative Reports: "Inside Scientology", December 14, 1998
- ^ St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the originalon July 9, 2006. Retrieved August 5, 2006.
- ^ St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the originalon December 1, 1998.
- St. Petersburg Times.
- ^ "Decision of Landgericht Berlin (Hearing:27.O.764/00)". March 27, 2001. Archived from the original on October 27, 2007.
- ^ Prof. Dr. Ralf B. Abel. "Die aktuelle Entwicklung der Rechtsprechung zu neueren Glaubens und Weltanschauungsgemeinschaften" [The current development of Jurisprudence on newer faith and worldview communities] (PDF) (in German). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 30, 2007.
- ^ Kammergericht Berlin, Gz: 9 U 115/01, May 24, 2002
- Black PRabout Bob, which Scientology was spreading in Germany, including calling him a criminal, is false and defamatory and Scientology may not repeat any of it. This is a total victory because Scientology additionally must pay all costs. Further appeals are not permitted.
- ^ Tobin, Thomas C. (December 4, 1999). "Church draws line for critics". St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved August 13, 2006.
- ^ "Alternative Charlemagne Award for Robert Minton (English translation)". Leipziger Volkszeitung. June 3, 2000. Archived from the original on August 19, 2007.
- ^ "Leipzig Award 2000". Leipzig Human Rights Award.
- ^ Bowman, Lisa M. (May 1, 2003). "Anti-Scientology site spurs award". CNET. Archived from the original on June 16, 2011. Retrieved September 25, 2007.
- St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the originalon December 2, 2016.
- St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the originalon March 2, 2018.
- ^ ISBN 9781982185763.
- ^ St. Petersburg Times. November 2, 2009. Archived from the originalon November 6, 2009. Retrieved November 4, 2009.
- St. Petersburg Times. pp. 156–160. Archived(PDF) from the original on March 6, 2023.
- St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the originalon March 19, 2018.
- ^ St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the originalon March 2, 2018.
- St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the originalon March 3, 2016.
- St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the originalon October 1, 2003.
- St. Petersburg Times. Archived from the originalon March 19, 2018.
- Daily Independent. April 10, 2000. Archived from the originalon December 12, 2000. Retrieved September 24, 2009.
- Daily Independent. August 18, 2009. Archived from the originalon August 22, 2009. Retrieved September 24, 2009.
- The News Nigeria. August 17, 2009. Retrieved September 24, 2009.[dead link]
- YouTube Xenutvrecorded in 2000
- ^ "Nigeria: Senate backs debt buy-back to reduce external debts". Vanguard Daily (Lagos). July 2, 2000. Archived from the original on August 24, 2000. Retrieved September 24, 2009 – via AllAfrica.
- St. Petersburg Times. Retrieved January 29, 2010.
- ^ "Robert Schenk MINTON Jr. obituary". The New York Times. January 24, 2010 – via Legacy.com.
Further reading
- Childs, Joe; Tobin, Thomas C (2009). "Why did Bob Minton Switch Sides?" (PDF). Inside Scientology : Digital Newsbook (215 pages). St. Petersburg Times. pp. 156–160.