Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, April 12, 1991 TAG: 9104120472
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RON BROWN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Short
John R. Meteney, 42, is charged with embezzling from the Lynville-on-the-Lake Homeowners Association from March 1989 to May 1990.
He posted $5,000 bond after appearing before a magistrate about 4:35 p.m., a jailer said.
Meteney and his partner, Dwight L. Dean, were indicted on embezzlement charges by a Franklin County grand jury this month. Dean is still at large.
Both men left the state after their lake-development ventures went broke.
The charges stemmed from checks written on the association's bank accounts to pay for maintenance of Lynville's community water system. Authorities allege the checks were unauthorized because the developers - not the lot owners - were responsible for maintaining the water system.
If convicted, Dean and Meteney could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison.
Dean and Meteney were partners in a land-sales company that promised quick profits in property at Smith Mountain Lake. They were able to sell hundreds of previously unmarketable off-water lots from 1986 to 1990. They traded under various names, including Developing World, Universal Resorts, Blue Ridge Land and Real-Vest Inc.
The company went out of business last spring after its sales practices were the subject of television and newspaper investigative reports. Six buyers later filed land-fraud lawsuits.
by CNB