Complaint Review: Tech Wildcatters

I am an investor in the Tech Wildcatters VII 2017 fund. It is supposed to be a venture capital fund managed by Gabriella Draney Zielke and Ricky Tejapaibul of Tech Wildcatters, a Dallas startup accelerator. Tech Wildcatters and Gabriella have been in the news a lot over the past couple years, and the articles are mostly about scandal, layoffs, and problems with investors and startups. There were also a series of at least 6 anonymous emails this year where Gabriella was accused of fraud, theft, and embezzlement. The emails have compelling information, images, and links that seemed to verify most of the claims. I and other investors met with Gabriella to discuss the issues and she promised to have the funds audited and provide the investors with a report of the audit and other investigations. She basically blamed disgruntled ex-employees and interns for the emails.  I was surprised to see the entire office was empty except Gabriella.  When asked, she said that she had fired all of the employees.  We later learned that most of the employees quit.
 
The audit results did not arrive as promised. We had to constantly pressure Gabriella to get the audit going, and the other investigation into the allegations never happened.  4 months later, we finally got the audit results and we were shocked. It showed that nearly 70% of the fund was missing. Gabriella admitted to taking the 70% as her fee. That’s about $800k. Who charges 70% as a management fee on a venture capital fund?  No one does.
 
When I invested in the fund, she said the fees would be like other venture capital funds, which are typically 1-3%.  NOT 70%. 
 
The audit results also showed the company was bankrupt, operating at a loss, and even with these problems, Gabriella payed herself a $200k salary in addition to the 70% fee. That’s a $1 million dollar salary for a company that is failing and has no employees.
 
Besides Gabriella’s embezzlement, the audit proved that other allegations were true. The fund was supposed to be $2M. She told us it was $2M. The audit results showed that the fund was just over half raised, which means there was not enough in the fund to cover the strategy, investments, or other commitments made by Gabriella.  
 
The audit results confirmed our worst nightmares. 
 
Gabriella then orally and in emails confirmed our other nightmares. Even though she said the anonymous emails were all lies, the audit results proved that about half of the allegations were true. Embezzlement, lying about the fund, lying about what happened to the employees, and that the company was in financial trouble. What was left to prove?  Other forms of fraud.  Gabriella confirmed the fraud. She mentioned in an email that she did hire family members, and that they had stole from the company. She blamed them for the theft and said the FBI was investigating them. Gabriella then confirmed that she had declared bankruptcy in the past. She had denied this claim when the emails accusing here were initially circulated, but now she is saying that she did declare bankruptcy. No one in their right mind would have invested with her and trusted her with their money if they knew she had declared bankruptcy, was being investigated by the FBI, bankrupted other companies, and so on and so on.
 
So what accusations that Gabriella has previously denied were confirmed by the audit and then by Gabriella?  All of them.
A. Gabriella’s embezzlement of investor funds
B. Tech Wildcatters is bankrupt
C. Tech Wildcatters lied and did not provide startup with investments it had put in the press and on social media
D. Gabriella hired family members that stole from the company
E. Gabriella declared bankruptcy and lied about it
F. Gabriella lied about the fund fee and fund size
G. Gabriella lied about firing all of the employees. They all quit in several weeks.
H. Gabriella lied about her experience, background, and success
 
I and others had had enough by this point. We asked for our investment back. Gabriella would not return our investment. Instead, she resigned as CEO and is hiding from us. She is non responsive to phone calls, texts, and emails. She is not in the office and it is usually locked up. She has gone silent on social media.  
 
The new CEO, Ricky Tejapaibul, claims he has no knowledge of any of these problems and essentially plays innocent and dumb. He is a CEO of a company without employees. Then we found out that he is not the CEO of the same Tech Wildcatters. Even though he is in the same news articles and being quoted along with Gabriella as him being appointed the new CEO, he claims that is a different company. We found online where Ricky Tejapaibul has registered 2 new LLC companies in Texas that plays on the Tech Wildcatters name. They are not registered in Dallas, but instead in Frisco Texas. Tech Wildcatters Dallas is still registered to Gabriella. Yet, his office is in the Tech Wildcatters Dallas office, his name is on the Tech Wildcatters Dallas blogs and emails, he is in the newspaper saying he is taking the reins from Gabriella, but yet he claims he is the CEO of a different company and that the problems are with Tech Wildcatters Dallas and Gabriella.  
 
I am not sure who these scam artists think they are, but it’s over. 
 
I am getting a lawyer and have already spoken with the SEC and prosecutors. It may take a couple years, but they will not escape the long arm of the law.
 
If you too have been ripped off by Tech Wildcatters, please contact me.