DeGroot stated bankruptcy proceeding filings demonstrated Visser’s business due around $800,000 to about several people in Maranatha or their organizations, like the Thompsons. DeGroot also supplied records of Thompson’s financial loans to Visser’s enterprises.
Thompson said when he knew that Visser wasn’t planning to shell out your straight back, he submitted case against Visser while the chapel to try and recoup his funds. (Thompson stated their attorney proposed suing for $1 million because plaintiffs normally become half what they inquire and Thompson could incur legal costs.)
Thompson included that he and Visser never attained a settlement as Zacharias’ match alleged. Rather, Thompson mentioned he fallen the fit because Visser moved broke.
Thompson said he might have still pursued the suit resistant to the chapel in addition to denomination. But alternatively, the guy and Lori Anne made a decision to run within the CRC denomination in an attempt to push responsibility.
a€?Significant economic Distressa€?
Both Brad Thompson and Ian deGroot laughed whenever I expected if Thompson was in a€?significant monetary distressa€? after his so-called a€?settlementa€? with his pastor, as Zacharias’ suit alleges.
In the same way, Tamara Battiste, Lori Anne Thompson’s aunt, stated: a€?Thompson try a millionaire . . . They don’t really wanted money. They’ve never needed revenue.a€?
Tax returns the Thompsons provided show that from 2010-2017, the Thompsons produced between $193,000-$552,000 passion match pof every one of those decades. In 2017-the seasons the Thompsons delivered the demand page to Zacharias- the couple produced $443,000.
The happy couple furthermore provided nicely to charities and ministries during those many years. In 2015, the Thompsons contributed a lot more than $102,000 to foundation. In 2016 and 2017, the couple contributed about $50,000/year to charity.
James Hunt, Chief Executive Officer of UCB Canada-the largest Christian broadcasting community in Canada-said Brad Thompson was certainly UCB Canada’s biggest followers prior to 2017.
Hunt stated Thompson paid the airtime for Ravi Zacharias’ radio plan on UCB Canada. Look mentioned that’s precisely why Thompson had been invited to sponsor a table within luncheon where Brad and Lori Anne fulfilled Zacharias.
Over the years, look said he is reached discover Thompson better and expressed him as an a€?honorable guya€? and a€?someone of ethics.a€?
Why the Demand Letter?
a€?As Lori Anne and I realized more and more predation and grooming together with level of subjects that predators have actually . . . we realized we had a moral obligations, or a godly obligations, before the Lord, not to do-nothing,a€? Brad said.
Brad stated the couple considered several options. One, ended up being going right to the panel of Ravi Zacharias Overseas Ministries (RZIM). However, the couple quickly dismissed the idea simply because they thought Ravi Zacharias, his wife, and his daughter, Sarah-who’s today Chief Executive Officer of RZIM-were all members of RZIM’s board.
RZIM no more posts the labels of its board customers. But in 2014, when RZIM past printed an IRS kind 990, Zacharias, his partner, along with his child, Sarah, had been on the board. We hit out continuously to RZIM, asking who had been on its panel in 2017, but RZIM didn’t respond to my personal matter.
Thompson stated the guy and Lori Anne also considered going to the nyc circumstances or some other significant publishing. Nevertheless partners chose against it because he mentioned they both had been experiencing feelings of suicide and couldn’t manage anyone embarrassment that would push.
However, the happy couple said they performed release her statements to many bloggers because they had been positive keyword wouldn’t wide spread to their own home town in Ontario.
Yet Thompson mentioned he and Lori Anne both felt the only way to render Zacharias just take them seriously were to submit the need letter. He stated their lawyer, Mark Bryant, advised the $5 million figure plus the partners reliable his view.
