Lawsuit claims crowdfunded start-up founders used company money to pay for strip clubs, groceries, and rent
Former bookkeeper accuses brothers of asking her to falsely enter spending as legitimate business payments
Two brothers used their company's money as a "personal piggy bank," a new lawsuit by their former bookkeeper claims, before the start-up shut down suddenly last week.
Among the expenses attributed to the cofounders were thousands spent on vacations to Hawaii, personal rent for their apartments, trips to competitions in Las Vegas, and a visit to a strip club, the lawsuit states.
The brothers, Marcus and Mitch Weller, founded Skully, a motorcycle-helmet company, three years ago. After raising close to US$2.5 million in an Indiegogo campaign, the company was supposed to be on track to produce an augmented-reality motorcycle helmet that had a rear-view camera — sort of like having eyes in the back of your head.
But the company disintegrated in the last month after the board forced the brothers out of the company in mid-July. On Friday, TechCrunch reported that the company they had built was shutting down altogether, despite having raised close to US$15 million through a mix of crowdfunding and venture capital.
Marcus Weller could not be reached for comment.
The new lawsuit, reported earlier by BuzzFeed, may shed some light on where the money went.