Victims of Alleged Church Ponzi Sue Banks, Trusts

Victims of the alleged financial fraud of Ephren W. Taylor II filed a class-action lawsuit in California on Tuesday, alleging a slew of banks and trust companies should have known their customers' individual retirement accounts were being funnelled into an alleged Ponzi scheme.

Among the defendants in the lawsuit are Bank of America; Missouri Bank and Trust; BOK Financial Corp. (BOKF), doing business as Bank of Kansas City; The Entrust Group Inc.; and Sunwest Trust Inc.

The lawsuit, filed in the Central Federal District of California, essentially alleges the companies didn't take proper care, or provide adequate information, as customers invested their retirement savings in Taylor's companies.

The defendants couldn't be immediately reached for comment late Tuesday afternoon.

The Securities and Exchange Commission last week alleged Taylor, who was CEO of City Capital Corp. (CTCC), was defrauding church congregations in what it called an $11 million Ponzi scheme.

The class action lawsuit, filed by Coral Springs, Fla. attorney Cathy Lerman, says Taylor "targeted hundreds of innocent, working class, church-going, 'socially conscious' people ... and their churches."

Taylor's attorney said his client will respond to the complaint and looks forward to telling his side of the story.

The lawsuit filed Tuesday replaces an earlier suit filed against Taylor last year, adding banks and fiduciaries as defendants.

-By Al Lewis, Dow Jones Newswires; 303-325-1791; [e-mail]