In August 2023, Michigan state officials audited Bay Auto Brokers after receiving a complaint about a possible fraudulent vehicle loan. The auditors uncovered discrepancies in Janssen’s sales and inventory numbers.

State investigators determined Janssen allegedly used fictitious vehicles in multiple loan applications. During an interview, Janssen told state investigators he had “floated the loan,” meaning getting more than one loan on a vehicle without paying off the first one, according to federal investigators.

Before Janssen went missing for 33 days, he allegedly withdrew nearly $65,000 from COPOCO ATMs from October to Nov. 13, and between Nov. 1 and Nov. 10, he withdrew nearly $8,000 from the $137 million Sunrise Family Credit Union, also based in Bay City. Records from Independent Bank, based in Grand Rapids, also showed he received $44,300 in checks from Bay Auto Brokers between Oct. 30 and Nov. 10.

By Nov. 13, Janssen went missing. When he returned from his hiatus on Dec. 16, he told his family and police he had been kidnapped by members of a cartel who held him hostage for 33 days.

Moreover, before he went missing, Janssen told family and friends he had been extorted by a Hispanic gang or cartel from October 2021 to November 2023 and had given them $2 million. The gang allegedly gave Janssen a phone and sent him text messages on locations to leave the money. He allegedly dropped around $25,000 in various boxes at each location.

While he was missing, the FBI, as well as state and local police, received notifications that several loans related to Bay Auto Brokers had gone unpaid.

Investigators learned Janssen allegedly asked several of his close friends to apply for multiple car loans.

In one case, a friend believed these loans were for vehicles that Janssen claimed to have in his possession. He also told his friend that the vehicles were in disrepair and he needed the capital to fix them up.

Janssen offered to pay his friend $600 for each loan he took out after the vehicles were sold. The friend agreed to the offer and sent his paystubs to Janssen who used them to falsify the loan documents, according to the criminal complaint.

The alleged $3.9 million car loan scheme began in June 2016 and continued through Oct. 30, 2023. Federal investagors said the loss value totaled $3,289,834.

In addition to COPOCO, the fraud scheme victimized the $2.3 billion Dort Financial Credit Union in Grand Blanc; the $1.6 billion Elga Credit Union in Grand Blanc; the $105 million Family First Credit Union in Saginaw; the $1.5 billion Frankenmuth Credit Union in Saginaw; the $58.3 million Great Lakes Federal Credit Union in Bay City; the $473 million Jolt Credit Union in Saginaw; the $84.1 million Lake Huron Credit Union in Saginaw; the $862 million Members First Credit Union in Midland; the $626 million Security Credit Union in Holly; the $137 million Sunrise Family Credit Union in Bay City; the $769 million Team One Credit Union in Saginaw; the $296 million United Bay Community Credit Union in Bay City; the $327 million United Financial Credit Union in Saginaw and the $1.1 billion Wildfire Credit Union in Saginaw. Janssen also allegedly victimized Bay Port State Bank, Huntingdon Bank, Mayville Bank, Port Austin Bank and Isabella Bank.

Janssen’s lawyer did not respond to a CU Times request for comment.

Peter Strozniak can be reached at [email protected].