(“Seriously man, buy a subscription to this magazine and I’ll send you ten free CDs.” Photo courtesy of SurfingTheMag)
Yesterday we passed along the news that Kim Couture has slapped a restraining order on Todd Beard, the Affliction co-founder and Xtreme Couture apparel partner who went apeshit when Kim asked him for an accounting of XC’s profits. And we all had a good LOL at this weirdo’s criminal history, which spanned everything from fraud to forgery to DUI. (Whoops!) Well, it’s not so funny when you hear the details of some of Beard’s atrocities. Just how mentally unbalanced is the Affliction boss? Take it from his baby-momma:
Denise Zullo, with whom Beard has a daughter, has alleged in court that Beard has struck, intimidated or threatened her and has received court protection from him in the past.
In a December 31, 1997, request for a restraining order, Zullo testified that in the late summer of 1996, Beard punched her in the stomach while she was pregnant. She also testified that on May 13, 1997, she sprayed him with pepper spray to stop what she called “another of his violent, drunken outbursts.”
Jesus H. Christ. Still not convinced that he’s a sociopath? Dig this 1995 L.A. Times article that Bloody Elbow found:
Two Orange County men were sentenced Thursday for defrauding more than 1,000 mostly elderly people from across the nation of more than $10 million…
Todd Beard, 30, of Huntington Beach pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud and was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison, plus about $9,000 in fines and restitution to victims of the scam…
Brown said the scam involved dozens of telephone salespeople at the four companies who persuaded people to buy home safety products for far more than they were worth by telling victims they had won expensive prizes.
To collect the prizes, victims were told, they had to buy the products, such as bacterial spray, an emergency kit or flame retardant spray. Victims were told to send hundreds and sometimes thousands of dollars for prizes and products worth much less.
“They targeted the elderly because they were the most vulnerable,” Brown said. “They were usually partially or fully senile, widowed and alone with no close family around. . . . They grew up in an era when if someone promised you something, more times than not they followed through, so they trusted.”
Bowman’s role was to make the initial calls to potential victims. He earned the company $110,000. Beard made follow-up calls to people who had been duped once to try and dupe them again. He brought in $350,000.
So, Beard’s the guy you send in when the other con artists can’t bring themselves to swindle senile pensioners who’ve already been swindled. (“Grow a pair, you pussies,” we imagine him saying while shoving aside his associates and picking up a phone. “God made old people helpless for a reason.”)
Anyway, ridiculous. As if this isn’t enough of a public-relations black eye for Affliction, Beard’s criminal past may sink the t-shirt/MMA company’s relationship with Donald Trump — even if that relationship really only exists in press conferences. As Kevin Iole points out, Trump holds a gaming license in New Jersey and gaming licensees are not permitted to do business with felons.
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@ KG
“I hope this guy dies a violet death”
Fuck yeah man. Better yet, I hope he dies a tulip death. OR A LILAC DEATH YEAH