‘Pyramid’ Participant Sentenced To Probation
A man accused of participating in an illegal moneymaking scheme which swept through Kootenai County will spend a year on probation.
His wife, who also was accused of involvement in the “pyramid” scheme, will go free, according to court records.
“This case proves the old adage that money is the root of all evil,” said Tim Gresback, attorney for Ken and Karen Detherage. “When something seems too good to be true, it is.”
The Kootenai County prosecutor charged the Detherages with unlawfully promoting and participating in a pyramid distribution scheme.
A pyramid scheme called the “Unconditional Giving Matrix” swept through Kootenai County in April 1994. To take part, people paid $1,500 to the person at the top of a 15-space pyramid-shaped matrix. For that money, they got a spot at the bottom of the pyramid.
Then they were supposed to recruit others to join the pyramid scheme.
As the pyramid’s spaces were filled, the person at the top was supposed to receive $12,000. Participants were told they, too, eventually would rotate to the top of the pyramid and rake in thousands of dollars.
Participating and promoting a pyramid is a felony that carries a penalty of up to five years in prison.
Although about 440 people were involved in the pyramid, the Detherages were the only ones charged with the crime.
The Detherages gathered $12,000 from people wanting to join the pyramid scheme, according to court records. Some of the people found out it was illegal and asked for their money back.
The Detherages refused to give the money back at first, according to court records. But their attorney said Wednesday they have since given it all back.
The Detherages, who own Ken’s Tap Cleaning and Bar Supplies in Coeur d’Alene, also insist they did not start the pyramid scheme.
“The sorry aspect of this case is that Ken and Karen Detherage were only a couple of folks out of the hundreds of teachers, doctors, real estate agents and housewives who participated,” Gresback said. “To this day, it’s a mystery to me why the Detherages were singled out for prosecution.”
As part of a plea agreement, Ken Detherage pleaded guilty in exchange for the charge against his wife being dropped.
Judge Gary Haman ordered him to serve a year on probation.
, DataTimes