Senzaki Lawsuit: Fraud, Forgery, and Personal Harm To The Founders

(Filed in the Chancery Court for Bedford County, Tennessee)

1. New Lawsuit Alleges Massive Fraud by Former CFO — Targeted Directly at the Founders’ Personal Equity and Reputations

   The complaint alleges that Michael Senzaki, the former Chief Financial Officer of Uncle Nearest, orchestrated a deliberate, multi-year scheme of fraud and concealment aimed not just at the company, but at Fawn Weaver, Keith Weaver, and Grant Sidney, Inc. personally. Plaintiffs allege the misconduct was intentional, coordinated, and designed to enrich Senzaki and his co-conspirators at the founders’ direct expense.

2. Lawsuit Says Senzaki Forged Documents and Stole Ms. Weaver’s Earned, Vested Equity — Valued in the Tens of Millions

   According to the complaint, Senzaki forged stock transfer certificates, falsified corporate records, and unauthorizedly transferred and encumbered Ms. Weaver’s personal equity compensation, which was fully earned and vested. The lawsuit alleges these acts were done without her knowledge or consent and constituted outright conversion of her personal property.

3. Plaintiffs Allege Fraudulent Use of Ms. Weaver’s Signature on Loan and Equity Documents

   The complaint details multiple instances in which Senzaki allegedly forged or digitally falsified Ms. Weaver’s signature, including on a $2.5 million bridge-loan amendment. Plaintiffs allege these acts were intended to manufacture consent, conceal liabilities, and expose the founders to risks they never approved.

4. Lawsuit Details Nearly $67 Million in Credit Drawdowns Taken Over Just 13 Months Under CFO’s Exclusive Control While Material Information Was Concealed

   The complaint alleges that between July 2022 and August 2023, Michael Senzaki exercised exclusive, unilateral control over the company’s drawdown process, executing 28 loan drawdowns totaling nearly $67 million in approximately 13 months—an average of roughly $2.5 million every two weeks. The complaint further alleges that this occurred while material financial information was withheld, liabilities were suppressed, and lender communications were structured so that the founders were deprived of full, accurate, and contemporaneous visibility into the company’s true financial condition and the risk implications of those borrowings. The lawsuit also alleges that Farm Credit never contacted Ms. Weaver to confirm the drawdowns, despite her being the sole authorized signatory on the loan, and that the drawdown process was deliberately manipulated to impair the founders’ equity interests and shift economic control without informed consent. The complaint does not allege that all drawdowns were unauthorized, but rather that the pace, scale, and manner in which they were executed were abusive and concealed.

5. Complaint Describes Vendor Diversion Scheme Concealing Over $7 Million in Liabilities

   The lawsuit alleges that Senzaki manipulated accounting systems to divert vendor payments, partially pay vendors while marking invoices as fully satisfied, and remove liabilities from financial records altogether. Plaintiffs allege this concealed more than $7 million in vendor obligations, inflating reported performance and concealing the company’s true financial condition.

6. Lawsuit Says Senzaki Admitted Forging Ms. Weaver’s Signature, Fabricating Board Approvals, and Using Stolen Funds for Personal Gain

   According to the complaint, Senzaki admitted to independent third-party investigators that he forged Ms. Weaver’s signature on loan and financial documents, fabricated board minutes to falsely reflect approval of loan documents that were never presented to or approved by the board, and diverted company funds and misappropriated personal equity. The complaint alleges he acknowledged this misconduct was intentional, sustained over multiple years, and deliberately concealed, and further admitted that ill-gotten funds were used to purchase a home in Las Vegas, acquire vehicles, and fund gambling activities, among other personal expenditures.

7. Filing Alleges Defendants Manufactured a False Public Narrative to Shift Blame to the Founders

   The complaint alleges that Senzaki and his co-conspirators intentionally created and allowed to spread a false narrative portraying Fawn and Keith Weaver as personally responsible for corporate debt they neither approved nor guaranteed. Plaintiffs allege this narrative was designed to conceal the fraud and legitimize its consequences.

8. Lawsuit Details Severe Personal Harm to Fawn and Keith Weaver — Independent of Any Corporate Claims

   Plaintiffs allege direct, personal damages that are not derivative of harm to Uncle Nearest, including more than $1 million in lost speaking and professional opportunities suffered by Ms. Weaver, nearly $9.75 million in frozen funding for Mr. Weaver’s unrelated business ventures, and widespread reputational harm, emotional distress, and loss of professional standing.

9. Complaint Emphasizes Plaintiffs Were Victims — Not Participants — in the Fraud

   The lawsuit states that the founders had no knowledge of, and did not participate in, any fraud. It further alleges that Senzaki admitted to independent third-party investigators that Fawn and Keith Weaver were unaware of his misconduct, and that he went to significant lengths to deliberately conceal the fraud from them while exploiting their trust and reliance during a period of intense national travel and brand-building. The complaint alleges this concealment was intentional and essential to the scheme’s success.

10. Plaintiffs Seek Injunction to Prevent Further Asset Concealment and Dissipation

    The lawsuit asks the Court to issue immediate injunctive relief preventing Senzaki and related entities from transferring, concealing, or dissipating assets traceable to the fraud, warning that absent court intervention, recovery may be impossible.

11. Claims Include Fraud, Breach of Loyalty, Breach of Fiduciary Duty, Conversion, and Defamation

    The complaint asserts multiple direct causes of action, including fraud, breach of loyalty, breach of fiduciary duty, conversion, defamation per se, false light, and conspiracy, and seeks compensatory and punitive damages for the personal harm inflicted on the founders.