Life Associates Fraud Case
Seeking Victims
In the Life Associates Fraud Case
Do you now have, or have you retained in the past, a financial interest as a plan participant in a retirement investment plan through third party administrator and plan adviser Life Associates, Inc. (“Life Associates”), of 160 South Municipal Avenue, West Chicago, Illinois 60185? Life Associates was once owned jointly by Lori and Richard Zachmann. It operated as a third party administrator for the retirement program of various Housing and Urban Development (HUD) agencies invested with Principal Financial Group (“Principal”).
In mid 2002, Principal completed what is referred to as a demutualization. A demutualization is a process by which an insurance company converts from a mutually owned company to a public company. The company then issues either money or stock to buy out the shares held by the policy holders.
During Principal’s demutualization, Life Associates may have had legal obligations under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act to inform plan participants of the demutualization and to provide certain notifications related to Principal’s demutualization and the resulting proceeds. At the time of Life Associates’ demutualization in mid 2002, Richard Zachmann’s wife, Lori Zachmann, was on record as the company’s chief operating officer.
In mid-2010, Lori Zachmann filed bankruptcy in the Northern District of Illinois Bankruptcy Court, Case #10-32363, at which time it was learned that some Life Associates’ business clients may not have been informed of the 2001/2002 demutualization. As a potential plan participant in a retirement investment account where Life Associates served as a third party administrator, you may have not been informed of your rights concerning the demutualization as required by law.
To date, no demutualization notification records have been provided that demonstrate that the plan participants or the plan sponsor were notified by Life Associates of the demutualization of Principal. Our case is ongoing, and while we can’t provide any additional information on our investigation at this time, we do need to hear from you to identify victims and to determine the extent of the potential fraud.
What we need to know:
- Your basic contact information (name, address, country, telephone numbers, e-mail address);
- Your investments/losses with Life Associates and/or Principal;
- Whether or not you can verify your investments/losses by providing your most recent financial statements; and
- Any additional information that may be helpful.
How to provide the above information:
- Preferred Method—Via an online form on the FBI.gov website: http://forms.fbi.gov/life-associates-website-questionnaire
- Via a dedicated e-mail address: LifeAssociatesInvestigation@ic.fbi.gov; or
- If you do not have access to a computer, you may mail your information to:
Life Associates Investigation
c/o Special Agent Vick A. Lombardo
Chicago FBI
2111 Roosevelt Road, Room 1088
Chicago, IL 60608
Your questionnaire is confidential. The FBI will need your contact information so we can keep you informed of potential progress in any federal investigation that may develop as deemed appropriate, as well as provide you updated information regarding your rights in this matter. If it is determined you are not a potential victim, you will be removed from the FBI’s victim notification system. Please submit your questionnaire by August 31, 2011.
Please send copies of any hard copy documentation to:
Life Associates Investigation
c/o Special Agent Vick A. Lombardo
Chicago FBI
2111 Roosevelt Road, Room 1088
Chicago, IL 60608
If you have investigative information that might help our case, please use our electronic public leads and tips form at https://tips.fbi.gov/.
If we determine that you are a victim, we will be in touch with you. Please note: due to the number of expected responses, you may not hear back from us for several weeks.
“The FBI understands the devastating financial, emotional, and physical impact that fraud can have in the lives of individuals and families,” says Kathryn Turman, director of our Office for Victim Assistance. “We see it every day. Even in these large-scale cases, the victims and their losses are not just numbers to us. Even when we cannot restore lost funds, we can usually provide help, hope, and support as we also work to bring justice to the perpetrators who are suspected of inflicting the damage.”
The following are resources that may be of help to you:
