By Charlotte Aguilar
"While West University police wait for subpoenas to bring them details of missing West U resident Brett Detamore’s financial and phone records to provide clues to his disappearance, Essentials News has learned of two filings against the homebuilder/remodeler that may indicate deep money problems.
His disappearance last Wednesday (June 21) came as Detamore had two lawsuits — totaling about $325,000 — filed against him in New York after he allegedly defaulted on a pair of borrowing arrangements frequently used by strapped businesses seeking infusions of fast cash by signing away future revenues. Both cases were filed in Kings County, N.Y. by the same law firm on behalf of clients.
The first, by Wynwood Capital Group LLC, involved a “merchant cash advance agreement,” in which Detamore is said to have received $100,000 in May, committing a total $149,900 in daily Automated Clearing House (ACH) withdrawals for what was labeled as a sale of “future receivables” to Wynwood.
The lawsuit alleges that Detamore stopped the automatic payments in early June after repaying $47,468 and now owes $102,431 plus fees for a total of $128,039.
In the second case, Novus Capital Funding II is suing Detamore to recover $197,207 in debt and fees through a “revenue purchase agreement” on which Detamore allegedly defaulted in a similar manner “within weeks” of Novus providing him $150,000 in exchange for the right to $217,500 of future revenues.
In both cases, two Detamore firms — his eponymous development company and Dango Properties LLC — are listed as defendants. In the second suit, the foundation set up in honor of his special needs daughter to fund causes involving children like her is also named.
A number of locations in West University, southwest Houston — and a restaurant in Bellaire — are all listed as Detamore’s addresses.
The “agreements” allegedly entered into by Detamore are frequently described as the “business version of payday loans” which enmesh individual borrowers who have limited options into an infusion of quick-fix cash with onerous terms.
Scrutiny of Detamore’s finances comes as West University Police Chief Ken Walker told a news conference Monday that foul play is not believed to be involved in Detamore’s disappearance last week.
Detamore, his wife and three young children had lived in West University for about five years, relocating after losing their southwest Houston home due to damage from Hurricane Harvey.
His business seemed to be thriving, according to those who know him. In his Instagram account in February, he showed what he termed “the 1st of 14 homes to be completed in 2023,” and he was driving a model of a Dodge Ram truck which sells with a low-end price tag of $84,555.
That truck, which had been photographed at 4:21 a.m. June 21 exiting West U on the city’s security camera system, was found about two hours later on fire in Bear Creek Park."
Read the lawsuits below:
