Durham case may taint Indy property dealings

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - Tuesday, we broke the story of moving vans in the driveway of the Indianapolis businessman Tim Durham's Geist area home. Discussion about that story on our Web site led us to a business on the northeast side of Indianapolis.

It's the Geist Sports Academy in the Oaklandon area. Three acres of land next to it are for sale. Or you can buy the three acres of land and the business itself.

If you want to buy the three acres next to the sports academy, it will cost you about $239,000. If you want to buy the sports academy building as well, that's $1.4 million and then you have to agree to lease it back to the current owners.

But buyer beware, it's a property with plenty of strings attached.

First, more than $95,000 in unpaid taxes are owed on the property.

Second, it may be an asset of Fair Financial, the Tim Durham company that was forced into bankruptcy last Friday.

A Web site that keeps track of Fair Finance dealings for investors hurt by the company shows Geist Sports owes Fair Finance about half a million dollars. If that's the case, its current owner may not have the right to sell the business.

The current owner is Jeff Osler. He's is the vice president of Obsidian Enterprises, the Indianapolis company raided by the FBI last November.

Osler is also Tim Durham's brother-in-law.

24-Hour News 8 spoke with Durham's attorney Larry Mackey about the property. He said the bankruptcy trustee must determine if it is an asset of Fair Finance. If it is, then the trustee has to decide whether it should be sold -- and any sale has to be approved by the trustee.

Mackey said since the bankruptcy trustee just got the case last Friday, it could be months before he is able to wade through it and make any decisions.

Neither Jeff Osler nor the Ohio bankruptcy trustee returned calls from 24-Hour News 8.

The real estate listing agent of Geist Sports Academy told 24-Hour News 8 he didn't know about the back taxes owed on the property. He contacted the Oslers who admitted to him the taxes are owed.

The listing agent said the Oslers are working with the county treasurer to get the taxes paid.