A Janky Promoter Was Arrested At DFW Airport After Federal Authorities Allege He Scammed Concert Investors Out Of Lots Of Money.

Beware of "janky promoters" because they are everywhere ready to scam the next unsuspecting person who is looking to invest in bringing entertainment to their city. If you need a manual or visual aid to help you identify these characters, go look up "The Janky Promoters" movie starring Ice Cube and Mike Epps for help.

I've ran into these types in my many years in the entertainment industry and you have to be careful and pay close attention to these fast talking m-fers because if you blink, they'll take you for everything you got and disappear just as quickly like the owner of "Straight Like That Entertainment" tried to do before getting wrangled by the feds.

A man who claimed to be a concert promoter for artists like Beyonce, Nicki Minaj, and others has been charged with fraud, announced U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Leigha Simonton.

Carlos Desean Goodspeed, 43, who operated under the assumed business name, “Straight Like That Entertainment,” was indicted on April 16 on three counts of wire fraud. He was arrested without incident at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport on Wednesday, and made his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Renée H. Toliver on Thursday last week according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

According to the indictment, Mr. Goodspeed allegedly told investors he was a concert promoter working in partnership with a multinational event marketing company. He allegedly solicited hefty investments and guaranteed returns as high as 50% in a short period of time.

For Example, in July 2018, he allegedly solicited $400,000 from one victim.

Goodspeed allegedly promised to pay him back $650,000 ($250,000 in profit) within four months. He claimed the money would be used to promote touring shows for artists Nicki Minaj and Future.

The same day the would-be investor wired Straight Like That Entertainment the money, Mr. Goodspeed allegedly withdrew $200,000 to pay a court-appointed receiver in connection with an SEC lawsuit; wired $20,000 to another duped investor; and withdrew $100,000 in cash and cashier's checks. He paid back only a fraction of the investor’s $400,000 investment.

In January 2022, Mr. Goodspeed allegedly solicited $50,000 from another investor.

In that alleged incident he told the investor the funds would be used to purchase concert tickets and suites for an upcoming Tyler, the Creator show. Despite the show taking place as planned, Mr. Goodspeed did not return the principal or pay out the return as promised, allegedly making excuse after excuse.

He eventually told the investor he would be paid in full after two additional concerts, including a second concert by Tyler, the Creator and another by Ludacris. The investor wired an additional $130,000 to Straight Like That Entertainment, which Mr. Goodspeed allegedly used for personal expenses, including rental payments at an upscale apartment complex, a purchase at a high-end retail store, and airline fees and hotels; and to make lulling payments to other duped investors.

In total, as a result of Mr. Goodspeed’s alleged fraud, investors collectively suffered a loss of over one million dollars.

An indictment is merely an allegation of criminal conduct, not evidence. Mr. Goodspeed is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. If convicted, he faces up to 60 years in prison (20 years per count).