Peter (Wolf) Thomas, aged 45, was recently released from prison. As a reformed citizen on parole, Wolf decides to go into business for himself. He starts a collections agency to help companies collect debts. The terms of his parole stipulate that he must pay restitution payments to the US government of $400 a month, or 10 percent of his income, whichever is greater. Imagine, you are his parole officer. You notice that after a year out of jail, Wolf makes some significant purchases. First, he buys a new Jaguar, which he drives to parole meetings. Second, he moves into an expensive neighborhood on the north side of town and takes a cruise to Jamaica with his 19-year-old girlfriend. Furthermore, he has never been late making his $400 monthly payments to the US government. After obtaining a subpoena for his bank records, you notice that he has only $1,000 in his account. About this time, you receive a call from a man who is making payments to Wolf’s collection company. He states that Wolf is threatening to break his legs and hurt his family if he does not pay Wolf’s company. The man informs you as well that Wolf demands that the chequeens should be made out to a woman, not a company. This complaint convinces you to investigate Mr. Thomas and his girlfriend. A search of public records in the county shows that Wolf’s girlfriend owns three cars costing a total of $90,000, a $250,000 house, a $120,000 apartment, and a company called Seize It. You check her bank account and notices that more than $50,000 is moving through the account each month. You decide to search through Wolf and his girlfriend’s trash a few times each month. In these searches, you find evidence that supports the following: three car payments totalling $1,000 per month; a $1,800 monthly mortgage payment; a credit card balance of $6,000, with $100 monthly payments; a balance of $12,000 owed to Home Shopping Network, with $500 monthly payments; $400 food payments during the past two weeks; and a $5,500 payment to Jamaican Cruise Lines. In addition to searching the girlfriend’s trash, you talk to her neighbours, friends, and co-workers and determine that she and Wolf spend $1,500 a month on miscellaneous items and trips. One neighbour tells you that Wolf recently gave his girlfriend a diamond ring that cost $3,000 and a bracelet valued at $5,000. Wolf’s girlfriend works as a waitress at a small restaurant and makes $15,000 a year. (Note: Assume that both Wolf and his girlfriend’s net worth last year were zero.)
Required: Use this information to prepare a net worth analysis of Wolf’s girlfriend. (Ignore interest in your calculations.)
