Former local developer Brandon Barber will remain in jail, after the defendant’s attorney would not concede to the court that Barber is a flight risk.
Barber will likely remain in jail at least through the weekend, attorneys said.
Barber left the Washington County Detention Center on Friday for federal court, after his attorney filed a motion seeking Barber’s release from jail. The motion included a request for Barber to carry out his home detention restrictions at his fiancee’s home in New York, attorneys said.
Setser recommended Barber undergo house arrest in New York, and his attorney, Asa Hutchinson III, concede the former developer is a flight risk. Hutchinson would not concede, so Setser ruled Barber must remain in jail.
Barber will remain in jail until a hearing to determine whether he is a flight risk and should be on house arrest. No date has been set for the hearing.
Attorneys for former Northwest Arkansas businessman Brandon Barber also submitted paperwork in federal court Wednesday (May 8) to try to get him out of county jail.
Hutchinson submitted documents to the Fayetteville federal court clerk requesting Barber be allowed to carry out his house arrest at his parents’ home in Jonesboro.
Barber was ordered into Washington County Detention Center Tuesday afternoon in the federal courthouse in Fayetteville.
Barber left the federal courthouse Tuesday in handcuffs, led away by Washington County Sheriff’s deputies to the county detention center.
Setser ordered the fraud suspect to stay in jail until Hutchinson files a motion for a permanent location for his house arrest. Barber had been ordered to leave his Manhattan apartment and attend court in Fayetteville this week concerning the stipulations of his release in March after being arrested in New York.
Barber’s fiancée’s ex-husband requested a restraining order against Barber, meaning he is not allowed to be around his fiancée Kristin Foodim’s children. A New York judge Tuesday extended the no contact order, but the restraining order was lifted later in the week.
With the restraining order in place earlier this week, Setser said she didn’t want Barber going back to the New York apartment he shares with Foodim.
Hutchinson’s request Wednesday claims that the home of Barber’s parents follows home detention restrictions, in that it has a working land-line telephone, no firearms and Barber’s parents have no criminal records.
Barber’s father is also gainfully employed and pays for the house, according to the documents.
The potential new home location for Barber has been forwarded to the U.S. Probation Office for approval. Barber’s parents would transport him from Fayetteville to their Jonesboro home if their home is approved, Hutchinson’s documents state.
During the hearing on Tuesday, Setser said she wouldn’t approve a location for Barber to live if it wasn’t permanent.
Barber was accused of violating the terms of his release and Setser on Monday ordered the former developer to remain in house arrest at the Chancellor Hotel in Fayetteville.
On Monday, Barber was represented in court by Asa Hutchinson, a Republican candidate for governor, and his son, Asa Hutchinson III.
After Monday’s hearing, Asa Hutchinson III said the defense team’s goals at this week’s hearings were to put Barber in a “position to maintain his employment” and also to take care of his family.
“We were unsuccessful to do that and obviously disappointed with the judge’s ruling, but we will obviously honor the ruling move forward and look forward to our day in court,” he said.
Foodim testified in court in Fayetteville on Monday that she and Barber share an apartment in Manhattan and are paying $4,900 a month in rent. The monthly rent is expected to go up soon to $5,200. She said the two of them have “negative $100″ in a joint checking account, but added she receives $3,000 a month in child support from her former husband and a $500-a-day rate doing freelance marketing.
Barber was at the hearings this week after being arrested again in late April in New York by FBI agents after failing to alert authorities 48 hours in advance about a business meeting, Hutchinson said.
The hearing was to determine if Barber’s bond would be revoked, since the unplanned meeting violated the terms of his release on bond. If the bond had been revoked, he would have been sent to a federal prison to await his June 17 trial date.
Barber last month had an unplanned brief meeting near his Manhattan residence with the chef at Erminia Ristorante Italiano to discuss business, court records show. Barber works on a commission-only basis for The Hotaling Group, a New York-based insurance firm whose website identifies it as having sports and entertainment clients.
Out on a previous $500,000 bond, Barber had been restricted to home detention except for work, family and religious functions, records show. He wears an ankle bracelet to monitor his whereabouts.
Barber is expected to have a June 17 jury trial date before U.S. District Judge P.K. Holmes in Forth Smith, officials said.
Barber pleaded not guilty April 15 to all fraud counts during a federal court hearing in Fayetteville.
Four others charged in the case also pleaded not guilty: They are K. Vaughn Knight of Fayetteville, James Van Doren of New York, Jeff Whorton of Johnson and Brandon Rains of Springdale.
Barber, 37, was arrested in March in connection with a years-long investigation by federal agencies into fraud allegations.
Prosecutors, the FBI and the IRS allege that Barber declared bankruptcy in 2009 after racking up $200 million in loans, then hid assets from the courts and creditors during the bankruptcy process.
Less than a decade ago, Barber, then in his 20s, founded the Barber Group in Springdale and tackled several high-profile area projects such as the Legacy Building and the Bellafont condominiums in Fayetteville. He even proposed the 15-story Divinity Hotel in Fayetteville in 2006.
Court records show Barber took on massive debt, taking out millions of dollars in loans from local banks. Litigation from the financial institutions ensued, and years later, several court cases by banks and area entities against Barber remain unresolved, according to Washington County Circuit Court records.
In debt and collecting lawsuits, Barber filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2009, but is accused of hiding his assets from creditors. A year later, he was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated for the second time in recent years, police records show. His development company also filed for bankruptcy, and he moved to New York.
