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 News from Around Banderas Bay | May 2007 
Waage Speaks in Brenda Martin Case
 Brice McVicar - Belleville Intelligencer
| | Brenda Martin knew nothing about a multi-million dollar fraud scheme which has resulted in her spending the past 15 months in a Mexican jail, says the man behind the operation. |
Brenda Martin knew nothing about a multi-million dollar fraud scheme which has resulted in her spending the past 15 months in a Mexican jail, says the man behind the operation.
Speaking to The Intelligencer from prison in North Carolina, Alyn Richard Waage said the former Trenton woman was employed by him as his chef and had no knowledge of the scheme he was operating. He referred to Martin’s situation as “grim” and insisted she is innocent.
“She had no idea. Absolutely not. I’m not a total fool. I wouldn’t have told Brenda what I was doing,” Waage said in a telephone interview Thursday morning. “The only two people who knew what I was doing were in Canada.”
In February 2006 Martin was arrested in Guadalajara and charged with money laundering and belonging to a criminal gang. Since then she has been housed in the teeming women’s prison in Puerte Grande despite her ongoing pleas for assistance from the Canadian government.
Waage operated the scam out of offices in the Bahamas, Belize and Costa Rica but resided in a cliffside mansion in Conchas Chinas, Mexico. It was during his stay in Mexico that Waage employed Martin for just over 10 months before firing her at the insistence of his mother.
In 2001 Waage was arrested at the Puerto Vallarta airport on a chartered Lear Jet from Belize City, Belize. For two years Waage and his accomplices managed to defraud an estimated 15,000 investors out of US $60 million.
He was indicted in California and is currently serving 10 years in prison.
Martin, however, should not be in jail, he insisted.
“I’ve done all I can to help her. I’ve signed an affidavit and I’ve said I will answer any questions to help her,” he said. “It’s pretty grim though. There’s not a hell of a lot more that can be done. I’ve done everything I can to help her.”
Waage said Mexican authorities likely believe Martin was involved due to a move by the woman which even he was unaware of. After Waage fired her after only 10 months of employment he gave her $20,000 in severance, half of which she invested in his Tri-West Investment Club.
The investment went against everything Waage had told those who were involved in the scheme. He said all his staff had been instructed not to accept any investments from individuals with a Mexican address because he didn’t want any problems with the Mexican authorities.
“Her giving that money back to me is why they think she was a part of what was going on,” he said. “If I’d known she had done that I would have strangled her.”
In recent months there have been some developments in Martin’s case, including Foreign Affairs Minister Peter MacKay bringing the situation to the attention of Mexican President Felipe Calderon. However, Martin remains in jail and is now hoping paperwork which needs to reach Waage will be sent from Mexico City to North Carolina to allow for her release.
The Canadian government has recently issued a request to Mexican authorities for an update on the situation, including where those questions are and why they have not been forwarded to Waage.
Additionally, the public has come forward to assist with legal fees through a fundraising campaign launched in the Quinte area a few weeks ago. That fund has recently passed the $7,500 mark and will be taking donations this weekend at the Price Chopper in Trenton.
An expatriate American, Anne Dyer, has also stepped forward in Mexico and is assisting Martin. Recently, Dyer managed to have her doctor allowed to visit Martin in the jail to assess her health and provide any assistance possible. A psychiatrist is also being contacted to visit Martin to ensure her mental state is healthy. |
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