Gene Steinberg's Financial Shenanigans @ Paracast forums

Standingstones

Celestial
What is never mentioned by Steinberg is that he and his wife get Social Security money PLUS whatever money his listeners send him. God only knows what sum that is. If he paid $600-700 a month for rent, where is all that other money going??
 

GhostofBiedny

Celestial
What is never mentioned by Steinberg is that he and his wife get Social Security money PLUS whatever money his listeners send him. God only knows what sum that is. If he paid $600-700 a month for rent, where is all that other money going??

That is the big mystery. I believe the bankruptcy revealed that they get 2800 USD per month on SS. Then add to that the income from both the podcasts, even without which, they are getting more money in their hands than a lot of people who actually do work (40 hours a week at minimum US wage = 1160/month).

The bankruptcy also quashed all their debts so that can't be a place for it to go either unless they have run up completely new ones but again the question would be on what?

Gene also admitted that he gets his medical care paid for (if I remember correctly).

It should be easy for two elderly people who are not working and don't have any dependants (other than a dog) to live comfortably with this amount of money and to a higher standard than many others - it just doesn't add up.

Further the fact that Gene reacts very angrily to anyone questioning such details suggests that there is something fishy.

He seems to want to keep things as opaque as possible even though he is the one that brought his finances into public discourse via his various begging scams.
 

Standingstones

Celestial
I don’t see how Gene can get angry when questioned about his finances. I would want to make damn sure I knew where my donation was going. Of course Steinberg could lie (and does) and tell you anything to cover his tracks.
 

GhostofBiedny

Celestial
I don’t see how Gene can get angry when questioned about his finances. I would want to make damn sure I knew where my donation was going. Of course Steinberg could lie (and does) and tell you anything to cover his tracks.

He has set responses which he gives to people that don't answer their questions. If they probe further he tends to get angry and tell them it is none of their business.

That's in private though. In public he refuses to answer anything and tends to block or ban people who ask.

It is a technique that is commonly employed by those who are doing something dishonest.
 
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goblin

Noble
Wow, the latest post at The UFO Trail blog puts out important details about Stephen Beizer's criminal history... and Gene Steinberg's involvement:

The UFO Trail: Caveat Emptor: A Paracast Saga of Discrepancies, Omissions and Unpaid Restitution

I suppose you could tell yourself Gene was just a babe in the woods trying to help out his sister-in-law's family but, I'm gonna say, for me at least Gene REALLY does not come out looking good in any of this. Maybe he was being used but I have a hard time thinking he was that clueless about it all.

Bad, dirty stuff. Shameful dealings. Gene seeming to be one step removed from the core of it. I think. But very uncomfortably associated; I think the term 'enabling' could likely be fairly applied.

Will anything here change the opinions of those working with Gene today? Will J. Randall Murphy care, or even bother to look?
 
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GhostofBiedny

Celestial
Wow, the latest post at The UFO Trail blog puts out important details about
I suppose you could tell yourself Gene was just a babe in the woods trying to help out his sister-in-law's family but, I'm gonna say, for me at least Gene REALLY does not come out looking good in any of this. Maybe he was being used but I have a hard time thinking he was that clueless about it all.

I really can't buy that as Gene seems to have been suckering (or at least trying to sucker) other people for living expenses under false pretences for more than a decade - which is precisely what his brother in law seemed to be doing prior to his arrest and trial (and perhaps even afterwards).

It seems to be the "family business" - and we have court records and business records which show Gene's direct involvement. That is not something that happened accidentally.

We know for sure from the information provided that Gene willingly misrepresented where funds he was collecting were going to in 2009 (when he was collecting money to "help" his brother in law).

He deliberately misrepresented the situation and made it out to be something completely different to what it actually was.

- The reason why is obvious, people would not willingly donate to a man who had been defrauding old ladies to fund his own lavish lifestyle (- sound familiar?) and his criminal defence.

Basically the donations were going to someone who has since been proven to be a con man - it is not even a matter of conjecture - it is in official court records.

Even at the time when Gene was soliciting money for him the court officials were concerned about how he was getting the money given his previous "form". They suspected he was up to his old games.

To believe that Gene was somehow an innocent and unknowing stooge in such as saga would be so far fetched as to be more improbable than even the most crackpot theories in ufology.

I would be more liable to believe that the Mothman was a misidentified owl or people mistook swamp gas for an alien mother ship.


He even brought Bezier on to the Paracast in 2009 and used the opportunity to shill the questionable gold business he (Bezier) was running at the time - this was long after the previous court cases and legal actions against his brother in law and at a point there could have been no question about his criminality.

Family loyalty is fine, but if you know you have a criminal family member and you have been burnt by their actions in the past, why the hell would you bring him on to your podcast to introduce him to a whole new set of "marks" by advertising and talking about his new business?

If you were a genuine victim of such a person there is absolutely no way you would help them find more victims in this way.

So I don't think there is any other way to read it than Gene being knowingly complicit in scamming people with his brother in law and that he is continuing to do that now even though the brother in law is deceased.

Whether he is doing it on the same scale or ripping off podcast listeners instead of old ladies is irrelevant, the unethical nature and immorality of it are still the same.

Jack has done a stellar job of putting the information together into a single cohesive post. I just hope enough people in the UFO community read it and wise up.

The more we tolerate or turn a blind eye towards scammers and grifters in the ufology/paranormal community the more we destroy any chances of serious investigation and investment in the field.

These kind of people make it intellectual suicide for any serious scientists or other research organisations to get involved as the whole field gets tarred with the label of being a scam, and everyone associated with it is presumed to be a scammer.

It makes it all the more disgusting and perplexing that people keep supporting and enabling these hucksters.
 
Ker-splat.

I had wondered where the "vengeful woman" bit came from. Gene is, apparently, a pathological liar but he is not a creative one. A victim of his brother-in-law's scamming (which of course Gene had no knowledge of, let alone involvement in [yeah, sure]) who wants her $168,000 back becomes a vengeful woman in Gene's bullshit narrative. I didn't think I could get any more disgusted with him, but this is just sick. He deserves whatever he gets.
 

GhostofBiedny

Celestial
Ker-splat.

I had wondered where the "vengeful woman" bit came from. Gene is, apparently, a pathological liar but he is not a creative one. A victim of his brother-in-law's scamming (which of course Gene had no knowledge of, let alone involvement in [yeah, sure]) who wants her $168,000 back becomes a vengeful woman in Gene's bullshit narrative. I didn't think I could get any more disgusted with him, but this is just sick. He deserves whatever he gets.


Right the "vengeful woman" was an elderly woman who was defrauded of a huge amount of money by his criminal brother in law.

Kind of reminds me of how Gene describes his own victims who are questioning his actions as being a "pack of online haters".

Criminals often reframe themselves as victims and the real victims as aggressors. It helps them to justify their actions and in Gene's case he used it to raise money.
 

Standingstones

Celestial
Does Steinberg suspect that new members to the Paracast might be there to spy on him and agitate him? Knowing how suspicious he is, he has to wonder.

That new UFO Trail piece must have Gene grinding his teeth and flipping his wig. I am quite sure he reads all the damning articles about himself. If he could only find a lawyer who works for free.
 

Wade

Stare..... They are always staring
Family loyalty is fine, but if you know you have a criminal family member and you have been burnt by their actions in the past, why the hell would you bring him on to your podcast to introduce him to a whole new set of "marks" by advertising and talking about his new business?

If you were a genuine victim of such a person there is absolutely no way you would help them find more victims in this way.

Word. Helping to facilitate a scam is such poor form.
 

goblin

Noble
Warning: unfounded and possibly unhealthy speculation ahead.

I just reread the 'Caveat Emptor' (love that being part of the title btw) post at the UFO Trail blog, and I asked myself... why?

Why did Gene ever solicit money that was allegedly for the Beizers? (And did they ever actually see any of that money? Or any of the money Gene and Grayson allegedly loaned them?)

Why did Gene involve himself in their schemes, to an extent that included taking ownership of Numis Gems?

Why publicly smear one of Stephen Beizer's victims? Why put your kid in the position of doing the same?

Why agree in court to 'supervise' the release of, not to speak ill of the dead but let's face the matter squarely, wad of human garbage Stephen Beizer?

I ask myself these questions. Why did Gene seemingly go so far on behalf of his sister-in-law's husband? Was Chris O'Brien's statement that Gene's wife has him by the short hairs truer than I imagined - was this all at his wife's insistence, to save her sister's family? (And yet - they ripped off her father, if I followed that blog post correctly...)

Did Stephen Beizer have something over Gene?

Was Gene the guy's acolyte or something, his apprentice grifter?

Was it just a convenient story to tell, somehow, to raise money...? (You may notice I don't buy Gene's patented "It was family!" explanation.)

New answers in sordid mystery raise further questions. Even if I knew where to start, I feel too grossed out to dig for answers. Gene deserves every minute he spends in that motel room.
 
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GhostofBiedny

Celestial
Does Steinberg suspect that new members to the Paracast might be there to spy on him and agitate him? Knowing how suspicious he is, he has to wonder.

Quite likely since he seems to be more paranoid than ever now.

That new UFO Trail piece must have Gene grinding his teeth and flipping his wig.

Absolutely. Gene has tried his hardest to hide the truth and when little snippets have gotten out he has tried to distort it as much as possible.

Jack's article lays almost all the evidence there for everyone to see in a clear and coherent manner with scans of the relevant documents.

He can't refute what is in official documents - though I suspect he will still try if he is forced to.

Gene never misses an opportunity to lie and make himself into the victim.

I am quite sure he reads all the damning articles about himself.

I'm quite sure he does. I'm pretty certain he also goes through twitter and blocks anyone that criticises him even slightly but he can't resist looking so I suspect he has some alternative accounts he uses just for spying.

I also suspect he has Google alerts set up so that he can see anything that anyone ever says about him. It's not like he has a job so he has plenty of time to read about himself and stew in his own juices at the fact that he can't censor the whole internet the way he does on the Paracast forums.

If he could only find a lawyer who works for free.

Even if he could there is no case he could bring. Any lawyer with any sense would tell him that.

Now if he was willing to pay he could probably find some shady lawyer who might take the case but they would still lose and all it would do is bring more attention to Gene and his shady financial dealings.

That is the last thing that Gene wants - as he might find himself moving from the motel to the jailhouse. He wouldn't have to pay any rent though so that is a plus.
 

Standingstones

Celestial
Quite likely since he seems to be more paranoid than ever now.



Absolutely. Gene has tried his hardest to hide the truth and when little snippets have gotten out he has tried to distort it as much as possible.

Jack's article lays almost all the evidence there for everyone to see in a clear and coherent manner with scans of the relevant documents.

He can't refute what is in official documents - though I suspect he will still try if he is forced to.

Gene never misses an opportunity to lie and make himself into the victim.



I'm quite sure he does. I'm pretty certain he also goes through twitter and blocks anyone that criticises him even slightly but he can't resist looking so I suspect he has some alternative accounts he uses just for spying.

I also suspect he has Google alerts set up so that he can see anything that anyone ever says about him. It's not like he has a job so he has plenty of time to read about himself and stew in his own juices at the fact that he can't censor the whole internet the way he does on the Paracast forums.



Even if he could there is no case he could bring. Any lawyer with any sense would tell him that.

Now if he was willing to pay he could probably find some shady lawyer who might take the case but they would still lose and all it would do is bring more attention to Gene and his shady financial dealings.

That is the last thing that Gene wants - as he might find himself moving from the motel to the jailhouse. He wouldn't have to pay any rent though so that is a plus.
I was being facetious about the lawyer.
 

GhostofBiedny

Celestial
Warning: unfounded and possibly unhealthy speculation ahead.

I just reread the 'Caveat Emptor' (love that being part of the title btw) post at the UFO Trail blog, and I asked myself... why?

Why did Gene ever solicit money that was allegedly for the Beizers? (And did they ever actually see any of that money? Or any of the money Gene and Grayson allegedly loaned them?)

Why did Gene involve himself in their schemes, to an extent that included taking ownership of Numis Gems?

Why publicly smear one of Stephen Beizer's victims? Why put your kid in the position of doing the same?

Why agree in court to 'supervise' the release of, not to speak ill of the dead but let's face the matter squarely, wad of human garbage Stephen Beizer?

I ask myself these questions. Why did Gene seemingly go so far on behalf of his sister-in-law's husband? Was Chris O'Brien's statement that Gene's wife has him by the short hairs truer than I imagined - was this all at his wife's insistence, to save her sister's family? (And yet - they ripped off her father, if I followed that blog post correctly...)

Did Stephen Beizer have something over Gene?

Was Gene the guy's acolyte or something, his apprentice grifter?

Was it just a convenient story to tell, somehow, to raise money...? (You may notice I don't buy Gene's patented "It was family!" explanation.)

New answers in sordid mystery raise further questions. Even if I knew where to start, I feel too grossed out to dig for answers. Gene deserves every minute he spends in that motel room.

I think the only two people who know all the answers are Gene (who will never admit to anything) and Bezier (who is dead). From what we have heard of his wife it seems unlikely that she was controlling Gene (but who knows what happens behind closed doors).

The fact that Gene seems to have duplicated Bezier's ways of raising money and continued long after his death suggests there may be some truth to the suggestion of him being an acolyte of sorts.

Why else would he bring someone who had burned all Gene's life savings (which is what Gene claims) on to the Paracast to promote his newest "business"?

Any normal person in that situation would cut himself off completely from such a toxic individual - which interestingly is what Gene's son seems to have done with his father.
 

SilentRunning

Honorable
There's a bit of the back and forth between Gene and Jack that really kind of rubs me the wrong way. (NOTE: Italicized content below is from The UFO Trail: Caveat Emptor, dated 8/13/18.)

The Aug. 13 email exchange between this writer and Steinberg for full context:
Mr. Steinberg,

Do you care to comment on the following for a blog post?

Attached please find an image of a June 2, 2009 Maricopa County Superior Court public document indicating Stephen Beizer owed in excess of $171,000 in restitution at that time. Also attached is a screen shot from your Jan. 1, 2010 email soliciting cash on behalf of the Beizers.

Any comment on requesting donations for your in-laws while failing to fully disclose his restitution responsibilities?

Jack Brewer

The UFO Trail

Steinberg's initial response:

Mr. Brewer,

At least you finally admit that I originally sought help for a relative, not for me. That’s refreshing.

If your sister-in-law’s family needed financial help, would you launch a full background check first?

Obviously, if I knew then what I know now, I would have made very different choices and I’d be in much better financial shape today.

Stephen Beizer died of pancreatic cancer in 2014. It was a painful death. He left his widow and handicapped son penniless and I will never be paid back.

Gene Steinberg

This writer replied:

To be clear, is it your contention that you were unaware of Mr. Beizer's criminal charges while you were soliciting money on his behalf? Is that your position?

Steinberg:
I made the decision to help the Beizers around 2003. Don’t forget that the family includes a seriously handicapped son. I was aware that Stephen did not live a squeaky clean life but not the specifics of any court records. I think most families would be generous even when imperfect family members were involved. Gene Steinberg


WHY in the name of all that's holy does Gene keep harping on the "handicapped son?" Okay, yes, the court records quoted regarding Beizer's sentencing, etc., reference the son as being handicapped and needing various therapies...but the presentencing report, dated 3/12/04, states that the son was an adult THEN. (See: https://www.keepandshare.com/doc5/23345/47790630-pdf-845k?da=y page 8, end of the first paragraph under DISCUSSION AND EVALUATION)

There have been other judgments found in said son's name that point to said son being at least in his 40s by now, possibly older, specifically I believe one by Discover Bank that was sold to a collection agency, and that debt was voluntarily dismissed by the Plaintiff.

So why is Gene still harping about how this person is a "HANDICAPPED SON?" The obvious answer is to garner sympathy. It sort of paints it in a less toxic light, I suppose.

Also. Why, in all of these letters, has Gene never said "my nephew?" I assume Gene is related to these people through his wife. That makes J. Beizer his NEPHEW. At the very least by marriage. That irks me, too.




 
Here's a gem, from the current post at UFO Trail. That post is a mother lode of such things, and this isn't the most disgusting, but it's just such a classic:

Going back much further we find a 2003 message attributed to Grayson Steinberg, Gene's son:

[Well put. Attributed to Grayson Steinberg. I don't for a second believe Grayson even knew his name was put on this piece of shit. He probably still doesn't know.]


Update: A Special Request From Grayson SteinbergJuly 31st, 2003My dad and I never like to devote any part of our daily content to personal matters, but this is a severe exception, because members of our family are involved and have nowhere to turn.

My aunt, Helene, and uncle Stephen have a son, Jaret (pictured at left), who is severely handicapped and requires special care. Life is tough enough balancing the burdens of raising a handicapped child and dealing with work and social concerns as well. Unfortunately, their problems have been greatly increased over the past five years, as an elderly woman with millions of dollars in the bank and time on her hands has been harassing them relentlessly because of a failed financial deal.
[Translation: theft by a convicted fraud.] Her actions are completely unjustified. [On what planet?] The matter has gone through several federal and state court actions, and my family has won every time. [Bullshit!] Yet this woman won't give up, and her actions have deprived my cousin of his disability insurance, and left his parents destitute. Creditors are constantly hounding them and they are on the verge of becoming homeless.

My mom and dad have established a special fund to raise money to help cover their huge legal bills and other expenses, including food and shelter. The situation is really complicated, and I’ve spared you some of the details. If necessary, my father can explain the rest if you wish to help us. I assure all our readers, however, that this is a serious problem, the need is urgent, and time is extremely short. As a result of your generous financial contributions, we've raised nearly a third of what we need, but there's still a long road to travel. The rest of our small family has helped as much as it can. We still require outside support. Readers who wish to provide some immediate assistance may write to help@macnightowl.com for further details.


You may also send your donations directly via PayPal using the following link (if you prefer not to use PayPal, write us and we'll send you a snail mail address for donations):

If Junior did write this, then he's a lying sack of shit just like his old man. This was sent out a few years after Grayson's aunt and uncle were investigated by the police for abandoning Grayson's grandfather, and stealing all his money. Pond scum.
 

SilentRunning

Honorable
Here's a gem, from the current post at UFO Trail. That post is a mother lode of such things, and this isn't the most disgusting, but it's just such a classic:

Going back much further we find a 2003 message attributed to Grayson Steinberg, Gene's son:

[Well put. Attributed to Grayson Steinberg. I don't for a second believe Grayson even knew his name was put on this piece of shit. He probably still doesn't know.]


Update: A Special Request From Grayson SteinbergJuly 31st, 2003My dad and I never like to devote any part of our daily content to personal matters, but this is a severe exception, because members of our family are involved and have nowhere to turn.

My aunt, Helene, and uncle Stephen have a son, Jaret (pictured at left), who is severely handicapped and requires special care. Life is tough enough balancing the burdens of raising a handicapped child and dealing with work and social concerns as well. Unfortunately, their problems have been greatly increased over the past five years, as an elderly woman with millions of dollars in the bank and time on her hands has been harassing them relentlessly because of a failed financial deal.
[Translation: theft by a convicted fraud.] Her actions are completely unjustified. [On what planet?] The matter has gone through several federal and state court actions, and my family has won every time. [Bullshit!] Yet this woman won't give up, and her actions have deprived my cousin of his disability insurance, and left his parents destitute. Creditors are constantly hounding them and they are on the verge of becoming homeless.

My mom and dad have established a special fund to raise money to help cover their huge legal bills and other expenses, including food and shelter. The situation is really complicated, and I’ve spared you some of the details. If necessary, my father can explain the rest if you wish to help us. I assure all our readers, however, that this is a serious problem, the need is urgent, and time is extremely short. As a result of your generous financial contributions, we've raised nearly a third of what we need, but there's still a long road to travel. The rest of our small family has helped as much as it can. We still require outside support. Readers who wish to provide some immediate assistance may write to help@macnightowl.com for further details.


You may also send your donations directly via PayPal using the following link (if you prefer not to use PayPal, write us and we'll send you a snail mail address for donations):

If Junior did write this, then he's a lying sack of shit just like his old man. This was sent out a few years after Grayson's aunt and uncle were investigated by the police for abandoning Grayson's grandfather, and stealing all his money. Pond scum.


I'm with you, Double 00 -- I've read this several times over, and there are just a few too many uses of certain phrases for me to think Grayson wrote this.
 
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