A federal lawsuit alleges that payments from the city of Mishawaka for the construction of a sports complex ended up going towards the developer’s waterfront home in Florida.
The city had entered into an agreement with Card & Associates to build and operate the $38 million Mishawaka Fieldhouse, funded by bonds and a state READI grant.
Federal prosecutors say the bills sent to the city were for specific construction costs. However, portions of two payments, totaling more than $2.2 million, were allegedly transferred through a series of bank accounts. Prosecutors say that money ultimately ended up going towards the down payment and an additional payment on a home on Marco Island owned by the owner of Card & Associates, Andy Card, and his wife.
The civil lawsuit accuses Card of wire fraud, saying these financial transactions were “designed to conceal and disguise the nature, source, ownership, location and control” of the funds. Now, prosecutors are asking the court to force them to forfeit the home.
According to multiple media outlets, Card said in a statement that he’s temporarily relinquishing control of his company’s development division but will continue to manage its current facilities. He said he’s hopeful he’ll be fully vindicated.
In its own statement, the city of Mishawaka said it wasn’t aware of the fraud at the time and “exercised appropriate due diligence based on the information available.” It said it “will pursue every legal remedy available to recover any funds that were unlawfully used.”
