A former homeless man could get $1 million after winning court case
A former homeless man and MIT graduate could collect $1 million after a judge ruled that a controversial investor deceived him, reports The Boston Globe.
John Henry Wenk was told by city inspectors that he must repair or sell his Brighton home, which was heavily damaged by fire. That’s when he struck a deal with investor Brian R. Burke in 1997, who agreed to pay $10,000 up front for the home and more than $3,000 a month for the next 15 years along with a final payment of $196,000, according to the Globe. However, Wenk received nothing after the initial $10,000 payment, his pro bono lawyers said. A Suffolk Superior Court judge ruled last week that Burke deceived Wenk.
Wenk, 75, told the Globe, “I was really out of it at the time. He knows how to work the system. He gets away with an awful lot. “
Wenk was homeless for years after he sold Burke the house until he moved into senior housing in 2002. Burke then sued Wenk in 2000, saying Wenk owed him for a legal dispute related to the sale of the house, reports the Globe. In 2003, a judge ruled in favor of Burke, awarding him $1.2 million and wiping out his debt to Wenk. But Wenk never had a chance to defend himself in that lawsuit, said his lawyers, because he was never notified about it.
Wenk’s lawyers say they will now foreclose on the Brighton home, worth $1.34 million, and Wenk will once again become the owner and get whatever the house sells for.
Burke told the Globe he feels he will win on appeal. About the lawsuit he filed against Wenk in 2000, he said, “The weight of evidence is in our favor. “That was something that happened 16 years ago. It’s ancient history. If a trial is necessary, there will be a trial.”
Read the full story in the Globe.
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