by C.F. David
In looking at Oklahoma Wind Investors LLC, the Boise City News has found that Randle Taylor, whose business card names him as Executive V.P. and Marketing Director has a lawsuit pending against him in DuPage County, Illinois.
Taylor’s connection to Lev-Tek, an Illinois company was discovered during a routine background check by The Boise City News. Taylor’s name was connected to two companies at the same address, (apparently Taylor’s home), in Katy, Texas, a Houston suburb.
Taylor was listed as Director and President of E/Z Clean Aquariums and as a contact for Wrangler Energy.
A Google search on Wrangler Energy led to Lev-Tek, and a suit filed against Taylor and his wife Elena (Naydenova) Taylor.
The suit begins in September of 2008, shortly after Mrs. Taylor, who according to court documents had returned from Russia along with Louis Castronovo, the Executive V.P. and Chief Operating Officer of Lev-Tek.
The documents indicate that Mrs. Taylor and Mr. Castronovo had made the trip trying to sell technology to Russia. The project was aptly named, the “Russian Projects”.
According to the court documents Taylor, (Randle), owned 25 percent of Lev-Tek and was an officer of Lev Tek LLC and Lev-Tek International LLC and Lev-Tek Inc. Randle and Elena Taylor are both purported in the documents
His wife Elena had represented to Lev-Tek that she was the God Daughter of the Minister of Health and Minister of the Voronezh Region of the Russian Government. Mrs. Taylor represented that with these connections she had considerable political connections within Russia and that her Godfather controlled all major construction projects within the nation.
Mrs. Taylor also indicated that all alternative energy projects had to be approved by the Godfather. She added that the Russian government was interested in buying five Plasma Gasification Plants, (total destruction of liquid and solid waste), and four Cellulose-to Ethanol plants. Each gasification plant is estimated by Lev-Tek to have a value of one billion dollars, each Ethanol plant, 20 to 40 million, along with engineering studies totaling 2.5 million for each site.
A ballpark estimate is that all nine projects and engineering studies could have yielded Lev-Tek, $5 billion, 182.5 million.
On or about April 27, 2008, Lev-Tek and the Taylors agreed that Elena would travel to Russia as the company’s representative, and agreed to $25,000 for that purpose.
By June 23, the Taylor’s reported the trip was a success and Elena prepared engineering study contracts for purposes of obtaining funds from Russian authorities. The contracts had been turned over to the Taylor’s to be translated into the Russian language.
By July 25, Elena Taylor and Castronovo had gone back to Russia at an additional outlay of $19,000.
Before making the trip, the Taylor’s had, according to the court documents, purportedly translated all the contracts into Russian, so that the documents could be executed by Russian governmental representatives.
In the suit, Lev-Tek contends that the purpose of the July 25 trip was to “…obtain executed contracts for two Cellulose-to Ethanol studies and to receive $5 million in exchange.
During that trip, according to Lev-Tek, two different meetings were held, one with the Minister of Russian Energy and the second with Zbarev Petrovich, the Russian Minister of the Sverdlovsk Region, and Viktopia Kazakova, head of the Chemical and Light Industry Department.
During those meetings, Mrs. Taylor advised Castronovo that the officials had indicated they were authorized to deposit $40 million and that the funds were immediately available and would deposit the same into an account for Lev-Tek.
Lev-Tek, then claims that Elena Taylor apparently refused to accept the deposit and did not explain to Castronovo why she made the decision.
She then told Castronovo that the studies hadn’t been translated because they, (Lev-Tek), would be partners with a company formed in Russia, with Russian bank accounts established with debit cards to enable draws on the accounts. Castronovo, according to the court document strongly disagreed with this plan.
Castronovo and Elena Taylor returned from Russia on or about July 31, 2008. Since that time Elena has refused to communicate with Lev-Tek about the Russian Projects, or provide information about what occurred with the Russian officials. She has also, through her husband, Randle Taylor resigned as an officer of Lev-Tek.
(A Sept. 30, 2008 document supplied by a Harris County Texas Constable claims that Randle and Elena have divorced and that she lives in Russia.)
The suit brings three counts, 1. Breach of Fiduciary Duty 2. Usurpation of Corporate Authority and 3. Embezzlement.
In Count 1, Lev-Tek has asked about information about the Russian Government’s funding for the Russian Projects. The defendants, Randle and Elena Taylor have refused to give that information.
Lev-Tek claims that as officers and a managing member, the defendants have a fiduciary duty to account for the results reached.
Lev-Tek has demanded an accounting of the funds provided to the defendants to cover their business expenses. The Taylor’s have refused to account for those funds.
On Count 2 Lev-Tek repeats that they (Lev-Tek), have received information that the Taylors have been contacting competitive companies in the U.S. and Europe in an effort to complete the Russian Projects, and that the Taylors have a Fiduciary duty not to divert Lev Tek’s business and that they cannot profit from any diversion of that business.
Count 3 Lev-Tek suspects that the Taylor’s may have placed funds from the Russian authorities for the Russian Projects into an account under their, (the Taylor’s), control. Lev-Tek makes claim that the Taylor’s could have a minimum of $5 million in that suspected account. Lev-Tek lays claim to any funds advanced by the Russian government, the Taylors should return it and if they converted any corporate funds they would be liable for treble damages to Lev-Tek.
In answer to the suit, Randle Taylor denies the claims of Lev-Tek and attempts to bring the case to Harris County, (Houston), Texas.
Taylor claims that Lev-Tek induced him to discuss business by offering to open a Houston based operation, in those negotiations he opened dialogue with 20 other business professionals.
Taylor continues that while Lev-Tek officials came to Harris County many times, he never traveled to DuPage County, Illinois.
He further claims he had personal expenses of $60,000 and was not and never had been an officer of Lev-Tek and had no official role or agreement with Lev-Tek and had not acted on their behalf in any official capacity.
However, Lev-Tek furnishes on their letterhead a document dated Jan. 2, 2008 transferring 25 percent ownership shares effective immediately. That document was signed by Lev-Tek president Robert Vedder, and Randle Taylor, identified as a Senior partner.
So who is Gideon Cowan?
Worldwide Energy President Gideon Cowan is at best, an enigma.
He was a victim in the 1980s and 90s of the farm credit crunch, and according to Joel Dyer’s book, “Harvest of Rage” published in 1997, Cowan was basically a good man to whom bad things happened.
In about 1990, in an effort to save his farm of over 4,000 acres, Cowan filed leins against his banker. He was arrested and charged with filing false or forged documents.
By 1996, Cowan, a fugitive had been arrested and put in prison.
He was released about five years later.
A background check today will show that Cowan has been arrested and served time for: obstruction of an officer; offering false or forged documents; bail jumping and kidnapping.
An Internet search will show that Cowan, as well as being president of Wordwide Energy, has founded a non-for-profit named, Save a Marriage-Save a Family, or S.A.M/S.A.F. for short.
A trip to the S.A.M/S.A.F. website will tell you that the idea was revealed to Cowan on August 26, 1998. (Apparently while still in prison.)
As part of the mission of S.A.M/S.A.F. the website draws attention to John 14:13 “And I will do whatever you ask for in my name, so that the Father’s glory will be shown through the Son.”- Good News For Modern Man.
According to the website, the The ministerial purpose of “Save a Marriage-Save a Family is to assist in reconciling broken families through God’s Word.
So as a believer and a former inmate, Cowan has apparently begun work with a ministry outside and inside the prison walls.
But now all the eyes in Cimarron County have turned to his efforts with his young start up energy company.
