1 00:00:03,240 --> 00:00:09,100 In this episode of American Greed, Ramil Robinson's story sounds like a 2 00:00:09,100 --> 00:00:10,100 Cinderella tale. 3 00:00:11,020 --> 00:00:15,540 A child living on the streets is adopted into a loving home. 4 00:00:15,780 --> 00:00:17,860 You know, he was blessed. He was a blessed athlete. 5 00:00:18,360 --> 00:00:20,160 He had a blessed family. 6 00:00:20,480 --> 00:00:25,020 And achieves the pinnacle of success in college basketball, helping the 7 00:00:25,020 --> 00:00:28,400 University of Michigan win its first NCAA championship. 8 00:00:29,060 --> 00:00:32,320 Went to the White House, got to the cover of Sports Illustrated. 9 00:00:32,600 --> 00:00:33,980 They were calling him Mr. Clutch. 10 00:00:34,600 --> 00:00:38,840 When he turns pro, Robinson becomes a living cliche. 11 00:00:39,420 --> 00:00:44,820 Vermeule had a spending problem from day one. He frequented strip clubs and 12 00:00:44,820 --> 00:00:47,280 would spend unbelievable amounts of money. 13 00:00:47,560 --> 00:00:49,320 A young kid with a lot of money. 14 00:00:49,520 --> 00:00:52,300 What are you going to do? You're going to have a great time. 15 00:00:53,540 --> 00:00:57,580 But this rags -to -riches -to -rags story has a twist. 16 00:00:58,810 --> 00:01:02,230 Robinson doesn't buy Mama a big house in the suburbs. 17 00:01:02,690 --> 00:01:03,690 Oh, no. 18 00:01:04,250 --> 00:01:09,310 She took him in off the street, and he ended up having her thrown back in the 19 00:01:09,310 --> 00:01:10,950 street. And that's not cool. 20 00:01:11,230 --> 00:01:12,510 Not cool at all. 21 00:01:13,210 --> 00:01:17,650 And I couldn't believe that he did that. You bite the hand that feeds you? 22 00:01:18,130 --> 00:01:22,630 I gave you a chance in life, and you did this to us? 23 00:01:44,970 --> 00:01:46,250 Cambridge, Massachusetts. 24 00:01:48,130 --> 00:01:53,470 Down a cobblestone lane, there's a wood frame home that belongs to Helen Ford. 25 00:01:56,250 --> 00:02:00,250 With her late husband, Lou, Helen raised five children here. 26 00:02:01,870 --> 00:02:06,450 But this widow's world is about to be turned upside down. 27 00:02:07,730 --> 00:02:09,889 And then all of a sudden, one night... 28 00:02:11,950 --> 00:02:18,270 I opened the door, and here's the constable saying, are you Helen Ford? 29 00:02:18,270 --> 00:02:20,290 handed me this thing, and I opened it up. 30 00:02:21,230 --> 00:02:22,870 I almost fell to the floor. 31 00:02:23,290 --> 00:02:24,830 An eviction notice? 32 00:02:25,270 --> 00:02:26,270 What? 33 00:02:26,870 --> 00:02:27,970 What's going on? 34 00:02:28,910 --> 00:02:33,290 Helen wonders if it has something to do with the loan she gave one of her sons, 35 00:02:33,670 --> 00:02:40,390 the former NBA player Rumeel Robinson, a loan backed up by the value of her 36 00:02:40,390 --> 00:02:41,390 home. 37 00:02:42,030 --> 00:02:44,470 So I immediately called him on the phone. 38 00:02:45,470 --> 00:02:48,990 Oh, no, Ma, I got it. I got it. I'll take care of it. I'll take care of it. 39 00:02:49,270 --> 00:02:51,010 I said, Ramil, what's going on? 40 00:02:52,330 --> 00:02:56,230 Ramil Robinson's I got it is an outright lie. 41 00:02:57,470 --> 00:03:00,490 Before long, Helen is kicked to the curb. 42 00:03:01,690 --> 00:03:04,050 I felt I left my family down. 43 00:03:05,090 --> 00:03:09,590 I didn't know where I was going to go, what I was going to do. 44 00:03:12,940 --> 00:03:17,060 Thirty years earlier, Helen and Lou Ford are well -known in Cambridge. 45 00:03:17,460 --> 00:03:18,720 He's a mail carrier. 46 00:03:18,940 --> 00:03:20,960 She's a high school safety officer. 47 00:03:21,720 --> 00:03:26,560 In addition to their own five children, Helen and Lou take in dozens of foster 48 00:03:26,560 --> 00:03:27,940 children over the years. 49 00:03:28,600 --> 00:03:33,580 I've always had a motto that children are not a deck of cards. 50 00:03:33,800 --> 00:03:35,840 Why should they be shuffled around? 51 00:03:36,540 --> 00:03:37,620 That's my motto. 52 00:03:38,600 --> 00:03:41,740 Helen volunteers at the Cambridge Community Center. 53 00:03:42,190 --> 00:03:44,050 which runs after -school programs. 54 00:03:45,610 --> 00:03:50,530 One day, a friend at the community center tells her about a young boy there 55 00:03:50,530 --> 00:03:53,270 doesn't talk much but seems troubled. 56 00:03:54,670 --> 00:03:57,530 He says his name is Ramil. 57 00:03:58,710 --> 00:04:00,910 And he said, my mother don't want me. 58 00:04:01,430 --> 00:04:02,990 My mother don't want me. 59 00:04:03,550 --> 00:04:07,270 My mother don't want me. He kept saying it, and I said, wait, wait, wait, what 60 00:04:07,270 --> 00:04:08,270 do you mean? 61 00:04:09,120 --> 00:04:13,160 I don't live with my mom. My mama put me out. She just don't want me. I said, 62 00:04:13,180 --> 00:04:14,260 well, where do you sleep? 63 00:04:14,740 --> 00:04:19,740 Ramil tells Helen he climbs through windows to sleep inside buildings. 64 00:04:20,180 --> 00:04:23,760 So I said, oh, how long have you been doing that? 65 00:04:24,100 --> 00:04:29,120 Oh, about three weeks. I said, oh, that's not good. I said, well, when's 66 00:04:29,120 --> 00:04:30,220 last time you ate? 67 00:04:30,520 --> 00:04:33,900 He said, oh, about three weeks. And I said, that's it. You're coming home with 68 00:04:33,900 --> 00:04:34,900 me. 69 00:04:34,980 --> 00:04:36,900 Well, he ate like there was no tomorrow. 70 00:04:38,000 --> 00:04:40,740 And I said, wow, I guess you haven't eaten in a while. 71 00:04:41,080 --> 00:04:45,100 And I remember the meal distinctly. We had pork chops, mashed potatoes, and 72 00:04:45,100 --> 00:04:46,100 string beans. 73 00:04:46,520 --> 00:04:48,620 And he just devoured it. 74 00:04:49,780 --> 00:04:55,480 The Fords learned that 10 -year -old Ramil Robinson was born in Jamaica and 75 00:04:55,480 --> 00:04:57,160 raised there by his grandparents. 76 00:04:58,840 --> 00:05:04,180 Ramil recently immigrated to Massachusetts to be with his mother, who 77 00:05:04,180 --> 00:05:05,900 has no use for him. 78 00:05:10,760 --> 00:05:17,500 The Fords feed, shelter, and care for Ramil for several months, and then a big 79 00:05:17,500 --> 00:05:20,740 day. Helen has a custody hearing at the courthouse. 80 00:05:21,700 --> 00:05:27,100 She wisely leaves Ramil at school to protect him from what surely would have 81 00:05:27,100 --> 00:05:30,140 been a traumatic encounter with his birth mother. 82 00:05:30,560 --> 00:05:37,380 And she walked in, and she said to the lady at the desk, where do I sign, 83 00:05:37,600 --> 00:05:38,600 because I don't want them. 84 00:05:40,880 --> 00:05:43,380 I looked. Oh, my goodness. 85 00:05:43,680 --> 00:05:45,020 How do you do that? 86 00:05:45,260 --> 00:05:46,820 I was devastated. 87 00:05:47,140 --> 00:05:49,880 The juvenile officer turned to me and said, well, you got a son. 88 00:05:50,100 --> 00:05:51,500 It was that quick. 89 00:05:53,340 --> 00:05:57,240 Eventually, the Fords officially adopt Rameel Robinson. 90 00:05:59,620 --> 00:06:06,400 His older brother, Donald Barrows, says Rameel excels in every sport he tries. 91 00:06:06,700 --> 00:06:08,400 But in basketball... 92 00:06:09,150 --> 00:06:11,610 Ramil Robinson is something special. 93 00:06:12,930 --> 00:06:18,290 This here is St. Mary's Park, where we used to play our summer league 94 00:06:18,290 --> 00:06:23,170 games and also just pick up games that sometimes got a little heated. 95 00:06:23,430 --> 00:06:24,510 A lot of good fun. 96 00:06:24,970 --> 00:06:29,430 And that's where he would come and showcase his skills, you know, all of 97 00:06:29,430 --> 00:06:33,710 Ramil would come there and people would ooh and ah, and everybody would go there 98 00:06:33,710 --> 00:06:37,250 and actually watch the summer games and watch and see what the talent is out 99 00:06:37,250 --> 00:06:38,250 there doing. 100 00:06:38,300 --> 00:06:42,720 And Rameel was one of the talents that had a lot of people over in our. 101 00:06:44,420 --> 00:06:47,960 Rameel goes to Cambridge Bridge and Latin High School. 102 00:06:48,480 --> 00:06:54,480 It's known for its storied basketball program, which produced NBA star Patrick 103 00:06:54,480 --> 00:06:55,480 Ewing. 104 00:06:56,520 --> 00:06:59,800 Under head coach Mike Jarvis, Rameel thrives. 105 00:07:03,020 --> 00:07:05,420 Coach Jarvis tells American Greed. 106 00:07:05,870 --> 00:07:11,230 that if he told his athletes to do 100 push -ups a day, Rameel would do many 107 00:07:11,230 --> 00:07:17,810 more. I probably would just go and do 100 like Mike requested, and Rameel 108 00:07:17,810 --> 00:07:20,690 just do it secretly. He'd probably do 300, 400, 500. 109 00:07:21,070 --> 00:07:25,150 Rameel was just a workaholic. He was about developing his game and doing what 110 00:07:25,150 --> 00:07:29,050 had to do to get his game off the bar, and he had that hunger for it. 111 00:07:29,330 --> 00:07:31,130 The hard work pays off. 112 00:07:31,760 --> 00:07:36,200 In 1986, Cambridge Ridge and Latin wins the state championship. 113 00:07:37,220 --> 00:07:39,760 And I said, so what do you think you're going to do with yourself? 114 00:07:40,100 --> 00:07:42,980 And he said, I want to go to the NBA. 115 00:07:43,480 --> 00:07:47,000 I said, really? I said, well, if you believe, you will achieve. 116 00:07:49,360 --> 00:07:54,700 Robinson signs on at the University of Michigan, ships off to Ann Arbor, and 117 00:07:54,700 --> 00:07:56,620 quickly becomes a star player. 118 00:07:59,980 --> 00:08:06,400 Michigan, at this point, has never won the NCAA championship, a sore point for 119 00:08:06,400 --> 00:08:09,060 Michigan superfans like Dottie Day. 120 00:08:09,500 --> 00:08:16,420 We're good. We're always good. We just need to get one little step better than 121 00:08:16,420 --> 00:08:18,980 good. We need to get great. 122 00:08:20,680 --> 00:08:27,080 In Rameel's junior year, the 1988 -89 season, fans like Day 123 00:08:27,080 --> 00:08:30,350 dare to wonder, Could this be the year? 124 00:08:32,010 --> 00:08:37,730 After going 24 -7 in the regular season, Michigan tears through the early rounds 125 00:08:37,730 --> 00:08:41,450 of the NCAA tournament and reaches the Final Four. 126 00:08:41,789 --> 00:08:43,169 Nobody gave them a chance. 127 00:08:44,090 --> 00:08:49,770 Nobody thought that they would be here and look at them now. 128 00:08:50,170 --> 00:08:54,530 You know the thing that says to take the village to raise a child? Well, I was 129 00:08:54,530 --> 00:08:56,170 part of that little village that was. 130 00:08:56,490 --> 00:09:02,370 helping Romeo succeed as well, you know. And when he got to that level and we 131 00:09:02,370 --> 00:09:05,230 got to see him do what he was doing, it all made us all proud. 132 00:09:06,890 --> 00:09:09,710 Helen and Lou Ford have limited means. 133 00:09:10,750 --> 00:09:16,130 They decide that Helen will travel to Seattle for the final four and Lou will 134 00:09:16,130 --> 00:09:17,630 stay with the kids and work. 135 00:09:18,050 --> 00:09:21,450 Some fans in Cambridge have another idea. 136 00:09:21,910 --> 00:09:24,790 What happened was they picked him up. 137 00:09:25,080 --> 00:09:30,440 On his route, he called the post office, picked him up on his route. 138 00:09:30,740 --> 00:09:35,140 The guy came up to him and said, Lou, you're getting on an airplane. 139 00:09:35,380 --> 00:09:37,160 He said, to go where? What happened? 140 00:09:38,280 --> 00:09:40,800 And he was just flabbergasted. 141 00:09:41,000 --> 00:09:45,140 And the tears were coming down my face like, oh, my God, did these things 142 00:09:45,140 --> 00:09:46,260 happen, you know? 143 00:09:46,540 --> 00:09:47,840 So I was excited. 144 00:09:49,540 --> 00:09:51,400 Monday, April 3rd, 1989. 145 00:09:53,930 --> 00:09:59,710 Before the championship game against Seton Hall, Robinson feels like a kid at 146 00:09:59,710 --> 00:10:00,710 Christmas. 147 00:10:00,930 --> 00:10:05,070 You know, having that boyhood dream of having your first bike. 148 00:10:05,330 --> 00:10:10,230 But that dream may be in jeopardy. After a back -and -forth game that ends in a 149 00:10:10,230 --> 00:10:14,710 tie, the Wolverines trail 79 -78 in overtime. 150 00:10:15,170 --> 00:10:20,570 With just seconds left in the game, Robinson gets his chance to leave his 151 00:10:20,570 --> 00:10:22,050 on basketball history. 152 00:10:22,470 --> 00:10:23,470 Five seconds. 153 00:10:23,790 --> 00:10:27,070 Robinson goes in and fouled Paul with three seconds. 154 00:10:27,570 --> 00:10:31,410 And he caught that foul at the end and got put on the free throw line. It was 155 00:10:31,410 --> 00:10:33,990 like a nail biter, you know what I mean? 156 00:10:34,270 --> 00:10:36,050 I mean, it seemed like forever. 157 00:10:36,930 --> 00:10:40,390 I remember just watching him on the line. He seemed very poised because I 158 00:10:40,390 --> 00:10:43,470 worried if he was going to be nervous to make the shots or not. 159 00:10:43,990 --> 00:10:47,310 I told him, like, come on, please let this pay off for you. Please let this 160 00:10:47,310 --> 00:10:48,310 off for you. 161 00:10:48,320 --> 00:10:51,680 And then he shot the first one, and then that one went down, and I was like, all 162 00:10:51,680 --> 00:10:52,720 right, now the game's tied. 163 00:10:53,180 --> 00:10:56,240 Like, here you go, Rameel, this is it, right? Here you go, one more shot. 164 00:10:57,680 --> 00:11:00,100 Rameel got ice running through his veins. 165 00:11:01,100 --> 00:11:02,400 Calm, cool, and collected. 166 00:11:02,920 --> 00:11:07,760 And then when that next one went through, it was just like pandemonium. 167 00:11:08,820 --> 00:11:11,360 It's time for Michigan to win a national championship. 168 00:11:11,820 --> 00:11:16,320 I don't know how to describe it other than that's what you play for. 169 00:11:17,260 --> 00:11:20,220 Who would believe it? You know, shocked the world. 170 00:11:21,020 --> 00:11:25,000 The champions go to the White House and meet President Bush. 171 00:11:25,360 --> 00:11:28,820 And now, Rumeel, I have a prop for you, a basketball. 172 00:11:30,280 --> 00:11:35,740 In Cambridge, the street where Helen and Lou Ford raised their family is renamed 173 00:11:35,740 --> 00:11:37,900 Rumeel Robinson Place. 174 00:11:38,760 --> 00:11:44,060 Rumeel even makes the cover of Sports Illustrated. I read this magazine all 175 00:11:44,060 --> 00:11:46,140 time, and I always look at the cover. 176 00:11:46,680 --> 00:11:50,060 And I'd say, oh, that's good, you know, this one made it, that one made it, you 177 00:11:50,060 --> 00:11:56,540 know. But to see your own kid, it's like, wow, is this real? 178 00:11:58,600 --> 00:12:03,420 In the NBA draft, Ramil Robinson is the 10th overall pick. 179 00:12:03,960 --> 00:12:08,060 He goes to the Atlanta Hawks, and his future looks secure. 180 00:12:10,040 --> 00:12:12,660 It's a story with heroic overtones. 181 00:12:13,240 --> 00:12:16,080 A kid born into poverty and obscurity. 182 00:12:16,560 --> 00:12:22,300 and abandoned by his mother at a tender age, has found a home in America and 183 00:12:22,300 --> 00:12:24,880 made his audacious dream a reality. 184 00:12:25,320 --> 00:12:27,840 Okay, you made it now. Here you go. 185 00:12:28,820 --> 00:12:30,420 Let's show what you can do. 186 00:12:31,960 --> 00:12:36,940 When American Greed returns, out of bounds and out of control. 187 00:12:37,480 --> 00:12:43,000 Rameel's problem was reckless spending, and he fell in love with a stripper, 188 00:12:43,060 --> 00:12:44,580 just like the song said. 189 00:12:45,160 --> 00:12:46,160 That was his problem. 190 00:12:58,300 --> 00:13:03,500 Selected by the Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the NBA draft, Rameel 191 00:13:03,500 --> 00:13:06,200 Robinson has realized his childhood dream. 192 00:13:07,260 --> 00:13:13,840 He moved to Atlanta, signed a contract worth $4 .3 million over four years. 193 00:13:14,480 --> 00:13:16,920 and finally gets his piece of the pie. 194 00:13:17,240 --> 00:13:22,560 I got there, and he's staying in this tri -level penthouse overlooking 195 00:13:22,560 --> 00:13:26,860 Park. And I'm like, you know, I'm thinking back now, I'm like, okay, you 196 00:13:26,860 --> 00:13:32,200 the saying, well, moving on up. I'm like, okay, wow, Rue, this is cool. 197 00:13:32,600 --> 00:13:33,760 This is real cool. 198 00:13:34,860 --> 00:13:38,520 The penthouse, though, is just a temporary crash pad. 199 00:13:39,900 --> 00:13:44,120 Within a year, Robinson decamps to a leafy Atlanta suburb. 200 00:13:44,960 --> 00:13:46,720 I was in a big, big house. 201 00:13:46,960 --> 00:13:49,760 And I was in the state. It was a house. 202 00:13:50,420 --> 00:13:52,720 There was a pool house. I could have lived in the pool house. 203 00:13:53,300 --> 00:13:54,340 That's how big it was. 204 00:13:55,920 --> 00:14:00,200 I'm like, Rue, what are you going to do with all this space, man? What do you 205 00:14:00,200 --> 00:14:01,200 need all this space for? 206 00:14:01,600 --> 00:14:05,500 R .D., you know, my boys, they all come up and... 207 00:14:05,880 --> 00:14:07,320 I'm like, well, how often is that? 208 00:14:07,540 --> 00:14:09,860 You know, you don't need all this space for that. 209 00:14:10,120 --> 00:14:12,920 Well, the dogs... Rue, 210 00:14:13,620 --> 00:14:16,160 what are you... These dogs don't need 11 ages. 211 00:14:16,860 --> 00:14:19,420 All this land and... Oh, it was gorgeous. 212 00:14:19,760 --> 00:14:22,160 It was really... I'd never seen anything like it. 213 00:14:22,540 --> 00:14:23,540 Mm -hmm. 214 00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:27,180 But his mom rarely visits. 215 00:14:27,600 --> 00:14:33,120 And something happens to Ramil in Atlanta, though neither she nor anyone 216 00:14:33,120 --> 00:14:34,700 the family can explain it. 217 00:14:36,200 --> 00:14:40,560 But somehow, the good son becomes the prodigal son. 218 00:14:42,260 --> 00:14:47,060 Robinson, they say, is a regular in Atlanta's strip clubs, where he can blow 219 00:14:47,060 --> 00:14:49,320 several thousand dollars in a single night. 220 00:14:51,000 --> 00:14:56,800 In fact, his brother says that sometimes after a night at a strip club, Robinson 221 00:14:56,800 --> 00:14:58,480 takes several dancers home. 222 00:15:04,970 --> 00:15:09,690 The strippers must be surprised when he shows them his room closet. 223 00:15:10,470 --> 00:15:15,570 Have them, you know, throw on their birthday suits and clean his house and 224 00:15:15,570 --> 00:15:19,490 pay them all another thousand dollars cash or whatever it was he was giving 225 00:15:19,490 --> 00:15:21,990 them. He just recklessly spent their money. 226 00:15:26,470 --> 00:15:33,130 Years later, in an ESPN program, Robinson looks back on those young and 227 00:15:33,130 --> 00:15:35,150 days. We're coming out of college. 228 00:15:35,430 --> 00:15:37,310 You know, we're going into the pros. 229 00:15:37,570 --> 00:15:39,490 You're young kid with a lot of money. 230 00:15:39,790 --> 00:15:42,510 What are you going to do? You're going to have a great time. 231 00:15:46,230 --> 00:15:48,490 On the court, Robinson struggles. 232 00:15:49,290 --> 00:15:52,430 He's not the dominant player he was in high school and college. 233 00:15:53,130 --> 00:15:56,250 And his brother says he clashes with coaches. 234 00:15:57,130 --> 00:16:01,610 Remember, Mel didn't understand he was very talented as a player, but when you 235 00:16:01,610 --> 00:16:03,810 get to that level, you're not the only one. 236 00:16:04,310 --> 00:16:10,470 You're not the only one. You're one of many, and you can be replaced just like 237 00:16:10,470 --> 00:16:12,110 that, and that's exactly what they did. 238 00:16:12,370 --> 00:16:16,410 Over seven seasons, Robinson pinballs around the NBA. 239 00:16:17,050 --> 00:16:23,270 Atlanta, New Jersey, Charlotte, Portland, Los Angeles, 240 00:16:23,650 --> 00:16:24,650 Phoenix. 241 00:16:25,800 --> 00:16:31,180 By 2002, the journeyman is long gone from the NBA and now plays for smaller 242 00:16:31,180 --> 00:16:32,940 teams in Italy and Croatia. 243 00:16:33,740 --> 00:16:37,980 It's a tough road for him as he confides to friend Marshall Jones. 244 00:16:38,520 --> 00:16:42,760 There was a time he called me and he was like, yo, D, they already left me. I'm 245 00:16:42,760 --> 00:16:45,100 like, what do you mean they left you? At the hotel, man. 246 00:16:45,400 --> 00:16:47,300 They just got on the bus and left. 247 00:16:47,960 --> 00:16:50,000 So I said, why did they leave you? 248 00:16:50,580 --> 00:16:54,980 He's like, man, I didn't want to get on the bus because it takes too long. 249 00:16:55,690 --> 00:16:58,110 I said, Ruse, what do you mean you don't want to get on the bus, man? 250 00:16:58,710 --> 00:17:02,230 That's how they travel over there, you know? 251 00:17:02,630 --> 00:17:06,450 He's like, yo, nah, man, you look over these cliffs and this and that. I'm 252 00:17:06,530 --> 00:17:10,450 Ruse, man, you have to do what the team does. 253 00:17:10,710 --> 00:17:15,089 You know, you can't just make up your own, you know, your own rules. 254 00:17:17,430 --> 00:17:19,890 It's obvious his heart isn't in it anymore. 255 00:17:20,670 --> 00:17:22,410 His career is done. 256 00:17:22,869 --> 00:17:24,210 At that point in time, I think. 257 00:17:24,640 --> 00:17:30,420 That's when he said, you know what, let me close the book of trying to play 258 00:17:30,420 --> 00:17:36,480 basketball and let me move on to some other business ventures. 259 00:17:37,900 --> 00:17:43,260 When American Greed Returns reveals plan to give back. 260 00:17:43,580 --> 00:17:50,140 And he said, when the project is completed, he said, you're going to be a 261 00:17:50,140 --> 00:17:51,140 woman. 262 00:18:02,730 --> 00:18:09,050 His basketball dream over, Ramil Robinson sells his Atlanta mansion and 263 00:18:09,050 --> 00:18:10,050 in Miami. 264 00:18:10,830 --> 00:18:13,490 Here, he hatches a new plan. 265 00:18:13,910 --> 00:18:16,790 It harks back to his roots in Jamaica. 266 00:18:18,170 --> 00:18:24,250 Robinson envisions building a world -class mega resort on Jamaica's North 267 00:18:24,490 --> 00:18:26,930 It is called Harmony Cove. 268 00:18:27,290 --> 00:18:30,330 This was going to be a 2 ,000 -plus acre. 269 00:18:31,040 --> 00:18:35,520 oceanfront resort development in Jamaica, unlike anything that the 270 00:18:35,620 --> 00:18:37,880 It was to be the flagship resort there. 271 00:18:38,180 --> 00:18:44,940 You're talking about building a billion -dollar resort, golf courses, dredging a 272 00:18:44,940 --> 00:18:47,440 harbor so that cruise ships can come in. 273 00:18:47,940 --> 00:18:51,140 Robinson forms a company, Megalodon Development. 274 00:18:51,680 --> 00:18:56,620 But the development team he assembles isn't exactly all -star talent. 275 00:18:57,000 --> 00:18:59,600 All he'd ever done was be a basketball player. 276 00:19:00,300 --> 00:19:03,660 His partner, well, wants for a living. 277 00:19:03,880 --> 00:19:09,000 There just wasn't anyone there that had any kind of experience doing anything 278 00:19:09,000 --> 00:19:10,000 close to this. 279 00:19:10,760 --> 00:19:16,520 An experience be damned, Ramil Robinson begins to energetically solicit 280 00:19:16,520 --> 00:19:17,940 investors in Miami. 281 00:19:18,260 --> 00:19:21,340 And he also taps his family network. 282 00:19:21,940 --> 00:19:23,180 He asked me. 283 00:19:23,580 --> 00:19:27,940 how much something about the equity in my mom's house, how much equity is in 284 00:19:27,940 --> 00:19:31,660 house. And I was like, how would I know? I don't know that. You need to talk to 285 00:19:31,660 --> 00:19:32,459 her about that. 286 00:19:32,460 --> 00:19:35,960 And he said, Mom, I need your help. I said, what's going on? 287 00:19:37,480 --> 00:19:40,800 Robinson flies to Boston and unveils his plans. 288 00:19:41,340 --> 00:19:45,740 And he had all the plans and everything, and he laid it all out on the table and 289 00:19:45,740 --> 00:19:51,120 looking at this stuff and looking at all these different aspects and, you know, 290 00:19:51,120 --> 00:19:52,120 looked pretty good. 291 00:19:52,160 --> 00:19:53,440 I said, well, I don't have any money. 292 00:19:53,900 --> 00:19:56,920 And so he said, well, what about the house? Can you put the house? 293 00:19:57,420 --> 00:20:01,900 I can hear my late husband always said, always help our children. 294 00:20:02,680 --> 00:20:05,480 I could hear him saying, help our son. 295 00:20:06,600 --> 00:20:07,620 So I said, yeah. 296 00:20:09,820 --> 00:20:12,600 At the time, Helen's house is paid off. 297 00:20:13,620 --> 00:20:16,720 She agrees to take out a mortgage for $600 ,000. 298 00:20:17,590 --> 00:20:21,350 and loan the proceeds to Ramil as seed money for his development. 299 00:20:22,190 --> 00:20:25,350 He promises to cover all the monthly payments. 300 00:20:26,510 --> 00:20:32,950 And he said, when the project is completed, he said, 301 00:20:33,070 --> 00:20:36,790 you're going to be a rich woman. He says, I'm going to give you half a 302 00:20:36,790 --> 00:20:42,190 dollars. You can do whatever you want with it. Thanks, Mom, and whatever. 303 00:20:42,550 --> 00:20:43,830 I said, oh, okay. 304 00:20:44,530 --> 00:20:45,790 So I believed it. 305 00:20:46,860 --> 00:20:47,860 I believed it. 306 00:20:50,480 --> 00:20:56,400 When you first hear the story, it's so improbable that you think that that's 307 00:20:56,400 --> 00:20:59,160 just made up, that that's a con. 308 00:20:59,580 --> 00:21:05,120 But as it turned out, it wasn't. There was a real live project called Harmony 309 00:21:05,120 --> 00:21:11,020 Cove and that the Jamaican government really wanted to build this billion 310 00:21:11,020 --> 00:21:15,800 -dollar resort and that somebody actually had contacted him. 311 00:21:16,400 --> 00:21:20,560 He was on the cover of Sports Illustrated, had an NBA career, he had 312 00:21:21,080 --> 00:21:24,060 And so apparently somebody thought it was a good idea to involve him. 313 00:21:25,380 --> 00:21:27,480 But it's not such a good idea. 314 00:21:28,280 --> 00:21:32,180 And there are several important points Ramil forgot to tell his mother, 315 00:21:32,300 --> 00:21:35,640 according to FBI Special Agent Kevin Kohler. 316 00:21:36,640 --> 00:21:42,700 First of all, he has no money. He has no income. He has no meaningful assets 317 00:21:42,700 --> 00:21:43,920 that he can pledge as collateral. 318 00:21:44,810 --> 00:21:46,470 He has a terrible credit history. 319 00:21:50,170 --> 00:21:55,710 And without Helen knowing, Robinson steals her house right out from under 320 00:21:56,010 --> 00:22:01,230 What she doesn't realize is that he has arranged to have the title of the 321 00:22:01,230 --> 00:22:03,590 property transferred over to one of his business associates. 322 00:22:04,370 --> 00:22:08,850 The associate takes out a $500 ,000 mortgage on the property. 323 00:22:10,350 --> 00:22:13,370 Nearly all of that money goes to Ramil. 324 00:22:14,410 --> 00:22:20,090 A couple months later, the property is refinanced for $625 ,000 and transferred 325 00:22:20,090 --> 00:22:21,390 to another business partner. 326 00:22:21,910 --> 00:22:27,570 The loan applications for these transactions are replete with lies about 327 00:22:27,570 --> 00:22:30,470 will live in the home and how much it's worth. 328 00:22:30,910 --> 00:22:36,550 He defrauded these banks. They loaned money on a house that wasn't worth near 329 00:22:36,550 --> 00:22:38,630 what the bank believed it was. 330 00:22:39,430 --> 00:22:43,290 A few months later, the house is flipped for a third time. 331 00:22:43,870 --> 00:22:45,950 This time for $1 million. 332 00:22:47,990 --> 00:22:52,790 So in a matter of about a year, this house that has no debt on it and is 333 00:22:52,790 --> 00:22:56,750 about $400 ,000 now has a million dollars of debt. 334 00:22:57,410 --> 00:23:00,390 And nearly all of that money had gone to Rumil. 335 00:23:00,650 --> 00:23:06,030 Very little was spent on Megalodon or to further this Harmony Cove venture that 336 00:23:06,030 --> 00:23:10,270 Megalodon was involved in, even though that is what he had promised his mom. 337 00:23:11,780 --> 00:23:17,500 What's more, the proceeds of Helen's home aren't nearly enough to satisfy 338 00:23:19,300 --> 00:23:24,820 Next on American Greed, see how Robinson swings open the vault of a small bank 339 00:23:24,820 --> 00:23:26,040 in the middle of Iowa. 340 00:23:26,400 --> 00:23:31,360 And later, hear what little regard Robinson has for his mother's home. 341 00:23:32,440 --> 00:23:36,480 Listen, you don't live by a house a lot. A house don't make a man or a woman. 342 00:23:49,160 --> 00:23:54,620 Ramil Robinson is not the first former NBA player to blow his money on 343 00:23:54,620 --> 00:23:57,220 strippers, cigars, and fast cars. 344 00:23:58,800 --> 00:24:04,040 But what sets him apart from some other broke athletes is his willingness to 345 00:24:04,040 --> 00:24:07,080 turn to crime to grab the almighty dollar. 346 00:24:08,340 --> 00:24:13,780 Through A Friend of a Friend, Robinson meets a loan officer at a small bank in 347 00:24:13,780 --> 00:24:15,140 suburb of Des Moines, Iowa. 348 00:24:17,610 --> 00:24:23,230 This lone officer, who has agreed to talk to American Greed anonymously, is a 349 00:24:23,230 --> 00:24:25,150 former college basketball player. 350 00:24:26,270 --> 00:24:31,670 And basketball talk is how the two men hit it off when Robertson calls the lone 351 00:24:31,670 --> 00:24:33,090 officer from Miami. 352 00:24:33,750 --> 00:24:36,290 I think I was a lot starstruck at first. 353 00:24:37,310 --> 00:24:43,230 When somebody has made it to the level that he made it, and I had aspirations 354 00:24:43,230 --> 00:24:46,690 get there myself at one point in time, I gave it. 355 00:24:47,080 --> 00:24:49,360 more credibility than I could have. 356 00:24:49,920 --> 00:24:55,060 Robinson tells the loan officer he's on the cusp of getting a big infusion of 357 00:24:55,060 --> 00:24:59,320 development funds to build his green mega resort in Jamaica. 358 00:24:59,640 --> 00:25:04,480 Until that ship comes in, he just needs a small bridge loan to produce 359 00:25:04,480 --> 00:25:07,340 promotional materials and business plans. 360 00:25:08,020 --> 00:25:13,840 But to hear him talk, it was, you know, the path had already been established 361 00:25:13,840 --> 00:25:14,900 and the road was paved. 362 00:25:15,470 --> 00:25:19,010 That was the first thing that I remember really jumping out. It was like, wow, 363 00:25:19,050 --> 00:25:21,490 this thing's, you know, it's ready to go. 364 00:25:23,490 --> 00:25:27,270 Robinson applies for a $377 ,000 loan. 365 00:25:28,810 --> 00:25:34,510 But the FBI says Ramil grows frustrated at how long the loan process is taking. 366 00:25:35,630 --> 00:25:42,490 To speed things up, he proposes paying $100 ,000 of the loan back to the 367 00:25:42,490 --> 00:25:43,490 loan officer. 368 00:25:44,090 --> 00:25:48,510 He knew the loan officer was strapped himself for money. He was living beyond 369 00:25:48,510 --> 00:25:49,329 his means. 370 00:25:49,330 --> 00:25:52,450 He had a fair amount of consumer debt. 371 00:25:53,430 --> 00:25:58,150 And so when Ramil proposed paying him a portion of these loan proceeds, it 372 00:25:58,150 --> 00:25:59,150 seemed attractive. 373 00:25:59,590 --> 00:26:03,670 That's where the greed part, I guess, comes in in the story. 374 00:26:04,070 --> 00:26:05,590 Everybody has greed. 375 00:26:06,870 --> 00:26:09,790 Robinson nets $277 ,000. 376 00:26:10,290 --> 00:26:12,770 It should last a while, right? 377 00:26:16,520 --> 00:26:22,260 Within two months, he's spent it all. He makes a $25 ,000 payment on a condo for 378 00:26:22,260 --> 00:26:23,340 himself and his girlfriend. 379 00:26:23,600 --> 00:26:29,180 He spends $35 ,000 furnishing the condo with high -end electronics, with 380 00:26:29,180 --> 00:26:30,480 designer furniture. 381 00:26:31,160 --> 00:26:33,900 He purchases a couple Mercedes -Benzes. 382 00:26:34,580 --> 00:26:40,880 He spends large amounts of money at cigar shops, designer clothing shops, at 383 00:26:40,880 --> 00:26:41,739 strip clubs. 384 00:26:41,740 --> 00:26:44,740 He spends all of that in about two months. 385 00:26:45,800 --> 00:26:48,880 Robinson never makes a single repayment to the bank. 386 00:26:49,300 --> 00:26:54,760 Yet he brazenly calls the officer again and again asking for more. 387 00:26:55,460 --> 00:27:00,800 But that initial kickback that's paid opens up the vault to the bank. 388 00:27:01,060 --> 00:27:05,460 And the bank continues to loan money because of this loan officer who's taken 389 00:27:05,460 --> 00:27:06,460 the kickback. 390 00:27:06,740 --> 00:27:13,480 In short order, there's a loan for $80 ,000, then $150 ,000. 391 00:27:14,620 --> 00:27:18,620 111 ,000 and 495 ,000. 392 00:27:18,920 --> 00:27:24,280 Special Agent Kohler says that a measly 5 % of the proceeds go where they're 393 00:27:24,280 --> 00:27:27,940 supposed to, to business development for Harmony Cove. 394 00:27:28,520 --> 00:27:33,320 With the rest, Robinson puts on a clinic of self -indulgence. 395 00:27:33,840 --> 00:27:38,460 And as you scan through what he's spending it on, here's just a single 396 00:27:39,120 --> 00:27:40,900 $111 ,000. 397 00:27:41,770 --> 00:27:48,230 in withdrawals and spending at restaurants and jewelry stores and such. 398 00:27:48,230 --> 00:27:51,170 heavy strip club traffic in this month. 399 00:27:55,530 --> 00:28:00,830 Robinson is spending so much, he can't possibly make good on his promise to his 400 00:28:00,830 --> 00:28:01,830 mom. 401 00:28:02,050 --> 00:28:05,630 Which brings us to that fateful day in Cambridge. 402 00:28:07,340 --> 00:28:12,300 I opened the door and here's the constable saying, are you Helen Ford? 403 00:28:13,180 --> 00:28:16,480 Ramil's mortgage on his mom's house is months overdue. 404 00:28:17,220 --> 00:28:22,520 And Helen is evicted from the home she has lived in for more than 30 years. 405 00:28:23,520 --> 00:28:26,600 Never thought anything like that was ever going to happen. 406 00:28:27,520 --> 00:28:28,520 Never. 407 00:28:29,000 --> 00:28:33,600 And I couldn't believe that he did that. The person, the hand, you bite the hand 408 00:28:33,600 --> 00:28:34,600 that feeds you. 409 00:28:35,230 --> 00:28:39,370 I gave you a chance in life, and you did this to us? 410 00:28:41,470 --> 00:28:47,210 Helen is distraught and crying when she enters the office of Dennis Benson, a 411 00:28:47,210 --> 00:28:51,670 lawyer who grew up in the neighborhood and spent many hours of his boyhood at 412 00:28:51,670 --> 00:28:52,670 her home. 413 00:28:52,750 --> 00:28:59,650 And I said to her that I generally don't take on those kinds of cases, but I 414 00:28:59,650 --> 00:29:05,640 wanted to help her. And it was one of those moments where a client, touches 415 00:29:05,640 --> 00:29:06,640 at your core. 416 00:29:07,340 --> 00:29:12,940 Dennis files suit against American Home Mortgage, saying they were negligent in 417 00:29:12,940 --> 00:29:14,120 not seeing the fraud. 418 00:29:15,260 --> 00:29:20,920 Helen dispatches her son Donald to Miami to find out what Ramil is doing and if 419 00:29:20,920 --> 00:29:23,680 there's any way she can get her money and her home back. 420 00:29:24,840 --> 00:29:26,340 When American Greed returns. 421 00:29:27,360 --> 00:29:32,600 It's a sad thing to me to go from being one who's being looked up to to be the 422 00:29:32,600 --> 00:29:33,900 one who's being looked for. 423 00:29:37,040 --> 00:29:39,240 Want inside information from the show? 424 00:29:39,460 --> 00:29:41,680 Join the Greed Social Network. 425 00:29:42,220 --> 00:29:46,100 Like us on American Greed's Facebook page. We'll be right back. 426 00:29:59,920 --> 00:30:04,200 Donald Barrows arrives in Miami looking for answers. 427 00:30:05,770 --> 00:30:08,370 and looking for his brother, Rameel Robinson. 428 00:30:10,930 --> 00:30:16,490 His first stop is Rameel's luxury condo in a private gated community called 429 00:30:16,490 --> 00:30:17,790 Williams Island. 430 00:30:18,950 --> 00:30:20,750 Knocking on the door, there's no answer. 431 00:30:20,990 --> 00:30:25,010 And there was a big space underneath the door, so I got down on the ground and I 432 00:30:25,010 --> 00:30:27,150 looked under there and I could tell that the place was empty. 433 00:30:27,470 --> 00:30:31,590 And I actually, like, yelled Rameel under the door and you just hear the 434 00:30:31,590 --> 00:30:33,190 just going throughout the whole place. 435 00:30:33,550 --> 00:30:34,550 Where'd he go? 436 00:30:37,000 --> 00:30:41,780 Donald plays gumshoe detective hitting high -end bars and restaurants in South 437 00:30:41,780 --> 00:30:44,400 Beach, where Rameel might hang out. 438 00:30:44,920 --> 00:30:50,140 Eventually, Donald gets a cell phone number and calls Rameel, who agrees to 439 00:30:50,140 --> 00:30:50,759 him up. 440 00:30:50,760 --> 00:30:56,960 So he comes and he picks me up in this really nice car, like over $100 ,000 441 00:30:56,960 --> 00:30:57,960 Mercedes -Benz. 442 00:30:58,880 --> 00:31:04,380 And we're riding. We weren't even in the car for 20 minutes. And he turns to me 443 00:31:04,380 --> 00:31:05,940 and he's like, do you have $20 for gas? 444 00:31:08,300 --> 00:31:12,220 The next night at dinner, it's the same song and dance. 445 00:31:12,720 --> 00:31:17,900 And then he turned and he looked at me and he had the same look in his eye as 446 00:31:17,900 --> 00:31:20,600 the night before when he asked me for the $20 for gas. 447 00:31:20,820 --> 00:31:24,020 And I knew it was going on right away. And I was like, you know what, Ramil? 448 00:31:25,440 --> 00:31:26,440 Yeah, unbelievable. 449 00:31:26,920 --> 00:31:31,360 Come to find out, Ramil didn't have the money to pay the restaurant bill. 450 00:31:32,800 --> 00:31:36,440 Turns out Robinson has been evicted from Williams Island. 451 00:31:37,420 --> 00:31:42,440 And he's now living on this dingy block of cheap hotels in North Miami Beach. 452 00:31:45,320 --> 00:31:50,400 He rents a single room, sponging off his girlfriend, who makes her money doing, 453 00:31:50,660 --> 00:31:53,260 what else, dancing in strip clubs. 454 00:31:54,320 --> 00:31:56,500 From Williams Island? Yeah, a big come down. 455 00:31:57,060 --> 00:32:01,720 A big come down. And if he's living like this, then how's he going to be able to 456 00:32:01,720 --> 00:32:03,140 do what he said he's going to do? 457 00:32:04,000 --> 00:32:09,460 Donald pushes Ramil to scrape together enough cash to pay creditors so their 458 00:32:09,460 --> 00:32:10,700 can get her house back. 459 00:32:11,220 --> 00:32:17,220 But there's no squeezing blood from this turnip. By that time, Ramil was so poor 460 00:32:17,220 --> 00:32:18,280 he couldn't even pay attention. 461 00:32:22,360 --> 00:32:27,480 Back in Cambridge, Helen Ford, now alone, has moved into a small apartment. 462 00:32:29,290 --> 00:32:33,470 Her former home is vacant, except for the occasional squatter. 463 00:32:34,830 --> 00:32:40,610 One day, to publicize her plight, she and her attorney, Dennis Benson, take an 464 00:32:40,610 --> 00:32:42,910 ESPN reporter through the home. 465 00:32:44,110 --> 00:32:48,690 When I walked up the driveway, I could hear my husband's voice 466 00:32:48,690 --> 00:32:52,610 telling me it would be okay. 467 00:32:55,110 --> 00:32:56,210 He said, Helen? 468 00:32:56,920 --> 00:32:59,200 You're a strong woman. Keep your head up. 469 00:33:00,560 --> 00:33:02,120 God's going to take care of you. 470 00:33:04,000 --> 00:33:05,360 I said, thank you. 471 00:33:06,080 --> 00:33:12,860 And then when I got to the stairs and I opened the door and I looked in and I 472 00:33:12,860 --> 00:33:18,400 said, wow, this was once mine, no longer mine. 473 00:33:21,440 --> 00:33:26,420 I remember walking into Romero's room and seeing the memorabilia. 474 00:33:26,780 --> 00:33:30,020 And the trophies and the dust. 475 00:33:31,280 --> 00:33:37,300 I felt the pain that Helen felt and the disappointment. 476 00:33:37,580 --> 00:33:39,560 A terrible experience. 477 00:33:39,980 --> 00:33:43,640 And I hope nobody else has to go through that ever again. 478 00:33:45,380 --> 00:33:51,780 Because when you give your all to someone who you didn't even know, you 479 00:33:51,780 --> 00:33:55,260 welcomed them into your bosom and your family. 480 00:33:57,420 --> 00:34:04,340 And I never mentioned him or introduced him to people as my foster son. This 481 00:34:04,340 --> 00:34:05,340 is my son. 482 00:34:06,440 --> 00:34:08,560 And I think that's the part that hurts. 483 00:34:19,300 --> 00:34:23,800 In Des Moines, Iowa, the loan officer is freaking out. 484 00:34:25,550 --> 00:34:28,949 Adam, I'm on him every day. You've got to get these loans paid back. 485 00:34:29,290 --> 00:34:34,810 Once a true believer in Harmony Cove, the banker finally wakes from his pipe 486 00:34:34,810 --> 00:34:41,510 dream. My mistake in this, my biggest mistake in this whole thing, was at that 487 00:34:41,510 --> 00:34:45,790 point in time, I had the opportunity to switch on the light and tell everybody, 488 00:34:45,850 --> 00:34:51,489 hey, there's probably something wrong with this that, you know, I wasn't aware 489 00:34:51,489 --> 00:34:52,489 of. 490 00:34:52,650 --> 00:34:58,250 We need to, you know, really, really hammer into this. Instead, I tried to 491 00:34:58,250 --> 00:34:59,249 it. 492 00:34:59,250 --> 00:35:02,510 Fix it by trying to hide the bad loans. 493 00:35:03,250 --> 00:35:05,990 His sleight of hand fools no one. 494 00:35:06,310 --> 00:35:10,970 And ultimately that's how it gets discovered by the bank is one of the 495 00:35:10,970 --> 00:35:16,890 officer's subordinates becomes concerned as she sees this practice of him 496 00:35:16,890 --> 00:35:21,210 rolling interest and penalties into the principal and then rolling it into a new 497 00:35:21,210 --> 00:35:22,210 loan. 498 00:35:22,220 --> 00:35:25,540 She blows the whistle, and the officer is fired. 499 00:35:26,240 --> 00:35:28,000 But that's just the beginning. 500 00:35:28,680 --> 00:35:31,160 The kickback is a federal crime. 501 00:35:31,680 --> 00:35:37,280 In September 2009, both Ramil Robinson and the loan officer are arrested for 502 00:35:37,280 --> 00:35:42,080 conspiracy to commit bank fraud and bank bribery, among other charges. 503 00:35:45,080 --> 00:35:46,840 When American Greed returns. 504 00:35:48,170 --> 00:35:52,590 See how much Robinson really cares about the neighborhood that saved him. 505 00:35:53,070 --> 00:35:54,390 They got my name on it. 506 00:35:54,830 --> 00:35:55,830 Whoopee. 507 00:35:56,310 --> 00:35:58,530 That's how much I care about my name being on a street. 508 00:36:14,700 --> 00:36:19,880 In Des Moines, Iowa, Rameel Robinson stands trial for bilking Community State 509 00:36:19,880 --> 00:36:26,660 Bank out of $1 .2 million so he could live life like the high flyer he once 510 00:36:28,900 --> 00:36:31,660 Keith Rigg is Robinson's defense attorney. 511 00:36:33,100 --> 00:36:37,600 Basically, the defense had to be convincing the jury there was a level of 512 00:36:37,600 --> 00:36:42,000 incompetence there which took this out of being criminal. 513 00:36:42,680 --> 00:36:45,200 And into basically just being stupid. 514 00:36:45,940 --> 00:36:49,600 But the feds say incompetence is no excuse. 515 00:36:50,120 --> 00:36:55,180 So Ramil was not prosecuted and convicted because he was a bad 516 00:36:55,440 --> 00:37:00,140 There are many bad businessmen who don't violate the law. But what made this a 517 00:37:00,140 --> 00:37:06,940 crime was he repeatedly made false statements to the bank. And then above 518 00:37:06,940 --> 00:37:10,800 beyond that was the very significant act of. 519 00:37:11,130 --> 00:37:13,570 bribing or paying a kickback to a loan officer. 520 00:37:14,210 --> 00:37:20,230 In an unusual twist, the defendant's own mother testifies against him. 521 00:37:20,470 --> 00:37:26,830 The sense of betrayal that Helen Ford felt was profound because here was this 522 00:37:26,830 --> 00:37:32,130 young man that she cared for, she loved, she supported. 523 00:37:32,870 --> 00:37:39,830 To find herself in a court of law testifying against him was something 524 00:37:39,830 --> 00:37:40,830 her apart. 525 00:37:40,940 --> 00:37:43,340 That was, I think, when it all hit me. 526 00:37:43,600 --> 00:37:47,100 How could he do this to me and my family? 527 00:37:47,700 --> 00:37:53,760 And so through sobs on the witness stand, she explained her current 528 00:37:53,760 --> 00:37:54,760 and circumstances. 529 00:37:55,000 --> 00:38:01,040 And Ramil sat and watched all this. The jurors were quite moved, it appeared, by 530 00:38:01,040 --> 00:38:02,040 her testimony. 531 00:38:02,620 --> 00:38:06,200 It takes the jury three hours to render its verdict. 532 00:38:06,760 --> 00:38:08,520 Guilty on all counts. 533 00:38:10,880 --> 00:38:14,440 Pending his sentencing hearing, Robinson is out on bond. 534 00:38:15,880 --> 00:38:22,600 During that time, he speaks with the ESPN program E60, and he napalms any 535 00:38:22,600 --> 00:38:24,220 bridge he had with his family. 536 00:38:25,080 --> 00:38:29,160 Listen, you don't live by a house a lot. A house don't make a man or a woman. 537 00:38:30,840 --> 00:38:35,480 But if that's the only thing you think you have, maybe you should have went to 538 00:38:35,480 --> 00:38:38,040 college and learned to study seven subjects. 539 00:38:38,620 --> 00:38:42,440 Or five subjects. You just took five subjects and not just did one thing in 540 00:38:42,440 --> 00:38:43,440 life. 541 00:38:44,940 --> 00:38:50,160 What he didn't realize is at the age, you know, of 50 years old, my mother did 542 00:38:50,160 --> 00:38:54,360 go back to school and got a master's degree in education. 543 00:38:55,460 --> 00:39:00,080 You know, devastating to me to hear him talk like that about her. 544 00:39:01,880 --> 00:39:04,900 After all the sacrifices I know that she made for him. 545 00:39:08,840 --> 00:39:10,460 I don't care about anybody but himself. 546 00:39:14,160 --> 00:39:18,880 Three months later, at his sentencing hearing, the prosecution plays the 547 00:39:18,880 --> 00:39:20,220 in open court. 548 00:39:20,580 --> 00:39:23,860 Helen's always known that I never liked that house anyways, Jeff. 549 00:39:24,460 --> 00:39:26,260 Okay? They got my name on it. 550 00:39:26,520 --> 00:39:27,520 Whoopee! 551 00:39:28,140 --> 00:39:30,540 That's how much I care about my name being on the street. 552 00:39:31,320 --> 00:39:36,760 But it's hurtful to hear him say that he didn't like that, I never liked that 553 00:39:36,760 --> 00:39:37,820 house. Really? 554 00:39:38,600 --> 00:39:42,220 Well, you never showed it. You never showed it. 555 00:39:42,580 --> 00:39:43,700 This changed. 556 00:39:44,160 --> 00:39:46,780 I just, it's mind -boggling. 557 00:39:47,340 --> 00:39:52,800 Before he sentences the defendant, the judge gives Robinson a chance to address 558 00:39:52,800 --> 00:39:53,800 the court. 559 00:39:53,820 --> 00:39:59,020 My standard advice to people is, you are going to say something. Once you get 560 00:39:59,020 --> 00:40:01,200 much past, I'm really sorry. 561 00:40:01,700 --> 00:40:03,580 Sometimes things can go a little sideways. 562 00:40:04,180 --> 00:40:07,080 In an emotional, incoherent rant. 563 00:40:07,630 --> 00:40:12,530 Robinson says he was convicted because his attorney is incompetent, and it 564 00:40:12,530 --> 00:40:13,530 doesn't end there. 565 00:40:14,550 --> 00:40:20,210 Robinson also accuses the judge, the Honorable Ronald Longstaff, of being 566 00:40:20,210 --> 00:40:23,610 corrupt. He made a bad situation much worse. 567 00:40:23,890 --> 00:40:29,110 When Robinson is finished, all eyes turn to the judge to see his reaction. 568 00:40:29,410 --> 00:40:35,190 And it was really interesting because he kind of got a hint of a smile on his 569 00:40:35,190 --> 00:40:40,060 face. It certainly clarified things for him. And he didn't get angry at all. 570 00:40:40,720 --> 00:40:45,360 Once he was done, said you'd made what was a hard decision simple. 571 00:40:46,260 --> 00:40:52,060 The judge says, by your statement today, you demonstrate to me absolutely no 572 00:40:52,060 --> 00:40:53,060 remorse. 573 00:40:53,780 --> 00:40:59,600 Told him that money is like a drug to you, Ramil. And just like that, Ramil 574 00:40:59,600 --> 00:41:04,700 Robinson, the Caribbean cast -off who realized his dream in the NBA, 575 00:41:05,580 --> 00:41:10,200 is given the stiffest sentence available, six and a half years in 576 00:41:10,820 --> 00:41:11,900 You know, he was blessed. 577 00:41:12,160 --> 00:41:13,600 You know, he was a blessed athlete. 578 00:41:13,940 --> 00:41:15,380 He had a blessed family. 579 00:41:15,800 --> 00:41:17,260 He had great friends. 580 00:41:17,580 --> 00:41:22,900 It's never too late to really reflect and to take responsibility and try to 581 00:41:22,900 --> 00:41:23,819 rebuild your life. 582 00:41:23,820 --> 00:41:28,000 And I think that's the part of his life that probably has to wrestle a little 583 00:41:28,000 --> 00:41:29,000 bit more with. 584 00:41:30,280 --> 00:41:34,640 The lone officer pleads guilty and is sentenced to two years in prison. 585 00:41:36,810 --> 00:41:40,630 In 2013, Helen Ford gets her house back. 586 00:41:41,290 --> 00:41:46,090 Dennis Benson negotiates a settlement with American Home Mortgage, the company 587 00:41:46,090 --> 00:41:47,610 that greenlit the fraud. 588 00:41:48,290 --> 00:41:53,730 As long as she stays current, paying for the home that was already paid off, 589 00:41:53,950 --> 00:41:56,730 Helen can stay there for the rest of her life. 590 00:41:57,330 --> 00:41:58,330 But I made it. 591 00:41:59,630 --> 00:42:00,790 I made it. 592 00:42:03,130 --> 00:42:05,550 I made it, and God is good. 593 00:42:06,010 --> 00:42:07,010 All the time. 594 00:42:09,050 --> 00:42:10,870 Because I'm still alive. 595 00:42:11,530 --> 00:42:13,150 And I'm back home. 596 00:42:14,610 --> 00:42:15,970 I'm back home. 597 00:42:21,850 --> 00:42:27,190 A sign on the street now reads, Helen and Lewis Ford Square.