PART 5
When the lender conducted an audit, the entire structure collapsed.
The lender demanded immediate payment and warned that the false documents could be referred to investigators.
Colin told Andrew that his signatures made him look like an equal participant in the fra:ud.
He claimed they would both be arrested unless the loan was paid before the lender filed a formal complaint.
The claim was exaggerated.
But Andrew did not know that.
He was 22, inexperienced, and terrified.
The records showed that $247,800 had been deposited into Westline’s business account shortly after our safe was emptied.
$92,000 went to the commercial lender.
$31,000 covered overdue wages, mechanics, and suppliers.
Colin withdrew the remaining $124,800 over the following 2 days.
Police later traced part of that money to Colin’s private gambling debts, overdue credit cards, and the rental car he used to leave California.
The money had not disappeared without a trail.
Detective Foster had known that it was used to rescue Westline and fund Colin’s escape.
What she had never known was whether Andrew understood the company had been fra:udulent before the theft.
At the time, Colin blamed Andrew.
Andrew was missing and could not defend himself.
The final document was Colin’s sworn statement.
It had been signed in 2014 and notarized by Rebecca Lane.
I sat on the concrete floor and began to read.
Colin admitted that he had deceived Andrew from the beginning.
Westline Delivery had never possessed the contracts, revenue, or equipment he claimed. He had hidden its debts and used Andrew’s trust to obtain a larger loan.
When the lender discovered the truth, Colin panicked.
Andrew wanted to tell Robert everything.
Colin stopped him.
He told Andrew that Robert would call the police and that the signatures on the loan documents would make Andrew look guilty.
Colin insisted that the only way to prevent prosecution was to pay the lender immediately.
He knew about our building fund because Andrew had once told him how close we were to buying the restaurant property.
Colin persuaded Andrew to take the money temporarily.
He promised they would sell Westline’s remaining equipment, recover outstanding customer payments, work in Arizona, and return every dollar before Robert and I understood what had happened.
It was never a realistic plan.
Worse, Colin never intended to follow it.
Andrew entered Bennett’s Table late that night.
He opened the safe and took everything because he did not know the exact loan balance, the unpaid wages, or the supplier debts.
He believed the full amount would be used to prevent Westline’s collapse.
Instead, Colin took more than $100,000 for himself.
The 2 men drove to Arizona.
Andrew still believed Colin was arranging equipment sales that would allow them to replace the restaurant money.
Then Andrew learned that Robert had suffered a heart attack.
According to Colin’s statement, Andrew wanted to return immediately.
Colin stopped him again.
He warned Andrew that the police would arrest him at the funeral and that Margaret would lose what little she had left paying legal fees.
Colin also knew that if Andrew returned and told the truth, his own fra:ud would be exposed.
For the 1st weeks after Robert’s de:ath, Colin kept Andrew frightened and confused because he was protecting himself.
Andrew eventually discovered that Colin had taken the missing money and lied about the equipment sales.
The friendship ended.
Colin disappeared, leaving Andrew in Arizona with less than $200.
By then, Robert had been buried.
Andrew had no money, no job, and no courage to face his mother.
Years later, Colin was sued by the lender and several former Westline employees. During the civil case, records proved that he had created the false contracts and altered the financial reports.
No criminal charge was filed against Andrew.
His attorney eventually confirmed that there was no active warrant for him and that the available evidence suggested he had been deceived.
That happened more than 10 years before Andrew’s de:ath.
He still did not come home.
Colin admitted that he contacted Andrew after the civil case and apologized.
At 1st, Andrew refused to speak to him.
Later, Colin began urging him to return to San Diego and tell me the truth.
By then, Andrew had spent years promising himself that he would go home only after replacing the money.
Colin signed the sworn statement in 2014.
He delivered it to Rebecca Lane with instructions that it should be released whenever Andrew was ready.
Andrew was never ready.
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