Mesoamérica Foundation

NOTE:  A radical Brazos Abiertos has threatened the Mexican attorney examining Brazos Abiertos, Inc.’s tax returns.  As a precaution, her photograph has been removed and she will be referred to as Ms. H in this article.  It is a sad commentary that Mexicans are learning about Americans’ commitment to free speech, democracy and public debate in this manner.

I am “Ms. H,” an attorney licensed to practice law in the State of Yucatan.  In this capacity, and as part of an ongoing investigation into the activities of Brazos Abiertos, Inc. in our state, I had the opportunity to interview Carlos Mendez, the director of Oasis de San Juan de Dios, A.C., a bona fide nonprofit organization constituted under the laws of the State of Yucatan, the Republic of Mexico, with its requisite permissions as issued by the Secretaria de Hacienda & Credito Publico, or simply, Hacienda, and in full compliance with all Mexican laws governing charitable organizations.

The nature of my meeting was to determine the financial assistance that Oasis receives from Brazos Abiertos.  As a matter of information, in its tax declarations before the IRS, Brazos Abiertos, Inc. gives as its primary tax exempt activity this: “Provide Food and Necessities For the OASIS DE SAN JUAN DE DIOS, A.C. AIDS SHELTER in the Yucatan and to Open and Operate the Brazos Abiertos AIDS Clinic in Merida, Mexico.”

Those are the two activities that constitute the purpose of Brazos Abiertos, Inc.  In our two hour meeting, Carlos Mendez explains that Brazos Abiertos approached him with the purpose of helping.  At that time John Truax and Jose Solis stated that whatever they managed to raise would be divided evenly between these two activites: assisting Oasis and operating a Brazos Abiertos clinic in Merida.  This was in 2006, and Carlos Mendez agreed to let Brazos Abiertos use its name exclusively for this purpose.  Carlos Mendez also certified before me that Brazos Abiertos announced a gift of significance, and that it committed itself to providing $40,000 USD ($500,000 Mexican Pesos) in assistance to Oasis over three and a quarter years, beginning in mid-2006 and which ended in October 2009.

Since October 2009 Brazos Abiertos has not provided any assistance to Oasis at all.  In 2008, Brazos Abiertos provided $12,020 USD in assistance to Oasis.  Most of this assistance was in the following form: Carlos Mendez would go shopping at Costo with Michell Molina DeVoid, who would charge everything on a credit card, and Carlos Mendez would issue a receipt for the food assistance.  In addition, on occasion, Brazos Abiertos would hold a special event at which donors would help Oasis directly, the last one being a concert in Colonia Buenavista, Merida, where Lisa Paige gave a concert, and which raised $45,000 Mexican Pesos for Oasis. (Lisa Paige was accompanied by Patrick Hutchinson and Dick Holland.)

I went over records, logs and receipts with Carlos Mendez to confirm his recollection with the accounting.  It all matched, and it is clear that Brazos Abiertos, Inc. assisted Oasis as Carlos Mendez described.  Carlos Mendez was under the impression that, during this period, Brazos Abiertos, Inc. had raised a total of approximately  $100,000 USD, since that would be a fair estimate based on the representations made to him by John Truax and Jose Solis, declarations made by Michell Molina DeVoid, and the amount of assistance received.

Carlos Mendez examines BA's tax returns, and is stunned.

When he was through, I explained to Carlos Mendez that Brazos Abiertos, Inc. had raised far, far more than $100,000 USD.  The total declared to the IRS for 2006, 2007 and 2008 totaled $255,321 USD.  Forensic accountants estimate that an additional $135,000 USD has been collected between January 2009 and August 2010. 

Carlos Mendez was incredulous. When he was handed a copy of the IRS tax returns for 2008 submitted by Brazos Abiertos, Inc. in the U.S., Carlos Mendez was shocked.  His hands trembled, he choked and he fought back the tears.  “This is a fraud,” he said.  “They have used the name of Oasis to raise money and kept it.”

"We never received this money!" Carlos Mendez confirms.

He struggled to make sense of it all, asking for translation about specific items.  For instance, its 2008 IRS tax filings, Brazos Abiertos, Inc. reports giving Oasis $16,084 USD for food, $186 USD for medicine and $4,613 USD for operating expenses, for a total of $20,433 USD.  “This is a lie,” he said.  “In 2008 Oasis only received $12,020 USD total.  That’s a discrepancy of $8,413 USD.  Oasis has been defrauded and been taken advantage of.”

NOTE:

Several days after our meeting, Carlos Mendez sent a series of emails that showed how convoluted the situation has become.  He claimed that going over his accounting records, finances for 2008 appeared to be “correct.”  But he also mentioned having received $50,000 USD from Brazos Abiertos in 2007, half of a gift from a single donor, a man we will identify only as Mr. L.  In the 2007 tax returns that Brazos Abiertos, Inc. filed with the IRS, however, no such donation from Brazos Abiertos to Oasis is listed.  Furthermore, Brazos Abiertos declared to the IRS that it gave Oasis $30,180, but Carlo Mendez claims that the figure was $16,000 USD.

It is clear that both organizations need to be audited by the appropriate authorities to ascertain the nature and size of the discrepancies between what Brazos Abiertos says it donated to Oasis and Oasis actually received.

“Ms. H,” an attorney, is counseling Oasis San Juan de Dios, A.C. on a pro bono basis.