The Indianapolis times., 1930-12-12
finance MAZE
Laid BARE IN
REALTY Crash
Lawyers Call Conference to
Find If Investors Can
Get Refunds.
PROMOTERS ARE GONE
Employees Will Be Quizzed
on Methods of Indiana
Estates Company.

A maze of high pressure finance
surrounding activities of the defunct
Indiana Estates Company, COILS
Meridian Life building, faced in
vestigators today.
The company" exceedingly ac-
tive of late among widows and
elderly women in Indianapolis, blew
up Thursday.
When the dust had settled, among
the missing were James F. Huteson,
financial backer. and his Rolls
Royce; William McElroy Dozier, one
Of the partners, and his Packard
sedan; Michael j. O'Keefe. the other
partner.
Likewise listed were the hopes of
many lot buyers who were prom
ised refunds; the expectations of
the many employees that their two
weeks of salary and commissions
would be forthcoming, and the an
ticipationS of several score of local
creditors that the morning mail
would contain checks in payment of
overdue bills.
Lot contracts held in the sheriff's
Office indicated lot buyers had
turned $4,000 into the firm in
down payments.
How the company was progress
ing until disclosures of its sales tao
tics brought the blowup, was i'll
dicated by deposits in a, downtown
bank: Dec. 1, $685.; Dec. 2, $2,165. .+3;
Dec. 3, $70062; Dec. 4, $206.12; Dec.
8, $3,379.12, and Dec. 10, $3.50.
Attorneys to Confer
These developments were sched-
uled for today:
A conference of attorneys to de-
ternline just how far financial re-
sponsibility extends in the purchase
Of lots in the Morningside addition,
for which the Indiana Estates Com
pany was sole sales agent. This is
to ascertain whether there still is
a possibility, through a joint civil
suit by complainants, to collect for
their losses.
Completion of attachment pro-
ceedingS on a $685. deposit found in
the Continental National bank. In
these proceedings an attempt will
be. made to obtain wages due some
minor employees
Legal action to open a safe de-
pcsit vault located Thursday. but
against which no official move has
been made. Contents of this box,
held in the name of the company.
are unknown.
Employees to Be Quizzed
Taking of statements of former
employees and salesmen of the COM
pany who have revealed willing
ness to tell what they know of the
operations Of Huteson, Dozier and
C'Keefe.
Examination of the extensive
files and records of the concern,
seized in an attachment raid on the
company's Offices Thursday after
noon.
Completion of plans to assure
official Investigations, both federal
and state.
An intensive search for the three
missing officials.
Closing of the out-of-town offices
of the concern:
Contract Is Cancelled
Thursdays happenings included:
Cancellation by Sidney Weinstein,
head of the Citizens COOPERATIVE
Realty Company, 722 Consolidated
Bank building, owners of the Morn
ingside subdivision, of the contract
between that organization and The
Indiana Estates Company.
Revelations that several down
payments on lots, aggregating sew
eral thousand dollars, had been
made by purchasers who have not
received contracts.
A complete housekeeping of the
company's offices by creditors, dep
uty sheriffs with attachments, and
furniture dealers.
Disappearance of several sales
men and financial managers for
the concern. Of these are several
whose names repeatedly appear on
contracts in which purchasers now
charge fraud and deception.
At the close of business Thurs
day night, in the offices of the Bet
ter Business Bureau, Inc, whose in
vestigation, with revelations pub
lished in The Times, barred the
company's operations, fifty-one un-
satisfied complaints from lot pur-
chasers were on file.
In each case money already OBJ
tanned from buyers ranged from
$500 to $4,000.