In 1948, the Baptist Foundation of Arizona was founded and initially sought to provide a financial revenue for participants while supporting Baptist-motivated causes.
Under his leadership, the organization held strict moral values, including its officers being forbidden to gamble or drink alcohol.
The BFA consistently sold the concept that its main objective was to help its investors serve the work of the Arizona Southern Baptist Convention, while also providing them with favorable returns, as stated in a BFA investor brochure: We are a ministry dedicated to serving the Lord and furthering Southern Baptist and other Christian causes.
We re-invest your money and the profit we earn goes to further such ministries as Christian education, care for children and senior adults, missions and new church starts.
The Reverend Ed Shaw suggested that the BFA "Explain the situation completely to investors; ask their forgiveness; let them know their gift of principal would help if they choose to give some or all of it.
[4] The BFA carried out a number of illegal activities in perpetrating affinity fraud against Southern Baptist worshipers in Arizona.
MVPNs were marketed with the notion that they received a higher than average yield and that part of the investment's return was used for God's mission.
[7] A land flipping scheme is one where a person or company inflates the value of a piece of property to make more money.
For example, the Phoenix New Times reported a case wherein an individual wanted to sell a US$1.9M (million) piece of asbestos-contaminated property to the BFA for US$1 as a tax write off.
[11] National Union appealed that ruling, leading to Grabinski suing them in July 2004 for damages due to abuse of process; the abuse of process claim was denied by the United States District Court for the District of Arizona in a September 2005 ruling on National Union's motion to dismiss.
[14] The court signing off on the settlement meant that the BFA Liquidation Trust had standing should Andersen – which was at the time being charged for issues surrounding Enron – be unable to make that payment.
[14] Christianity Today reported that the timing of this court approved settlement avoided "the worst case scenario for Baptist Foundation investors" of Andersen being convicted in its then ongoing criminal case regarding its audits of Enron, then quickly filing "for bankruptcy-court protection" from any civil lawsuits not yet settled in a court.