A West Bloomfield, Michigan, man is accused of helping to raise millions of dollars from investors for a proposed sports complex that he made little effort to pursue, instead using the funds for personal and lifestyle expenses, according to the Justice Department.
Kenneth Bardwell, 66, is charged with one count of wire fraud in the scheme, according to a criminal complaint filed with the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan on Tuesday.
The court document said Bardwell and others, through their companies Motown Sports Group Holdings, Inc. and Motown Sports Real-Estate Acquisitions Lan and Development, LLC, have claimed to be developing the entertainment and youth travel sports complex in Romulus, Michigan, since 2014. They allegedly sought investments and advertised the project through a crowdfunding site, public website, paid local television news segments and billboards around Detroit…