To the editor:

I attended one of Griffin’s seminars here in Cazenovia. It was advertised as a free educational session to better understand Social Security benefits. Most of us were retired or close to retirement. We were the demographic best matched to pitch annuities and the 54Freedom tax deductions offered by Jim Griffin, James Wolle and their team at 5 Ledyard.

I recognized one other individual attending the session. We both though it sounded too good to be true. We didn’t participate beyond the initial session. The promised “guaranteed” percentage annuity return was much too high and the non-profit trust tax breaks seemed outside tax law boundaries. As long term investors, we both knew that high returns, low risk and no taxes are almost never found together. Alarm bells went off. The path to financial success is generally a combination of diversified holdings, low expenses and great patience over a long term — not one investment with a high return.

Looking back, I wish that I had contacted someone in authority. But, it was a local businessman making the pitch, a profile on the company had been published in the Republican, I didn’t have any printed materials to share and had no real proof of anything illegal going on. It just smelled funny. I feel badly for local folks cheated out of millions by these eloquent mini-Madoff’s. These are evil men who intentionally destroyed lives with their personal greed.

Lesson: When someone promises amazing financial returns with no risk and the possibility of paying little or no tax … run. When you are through running, tell someone in authority who can investigate. Consider discussing any potentially major investment with a different financial professional than the one trying to sell it to you. Get a second opinion. Or maybe a third.

Kevin Curtis

Cazenovia