Here is a rough outline and a few details of the events at IAB over the last 12 months, but there is too much to tell as the situation is extremely complex.
Various members of the board found that BenHur Lee, The owner/legal representative/board member, had allegedly been involved in various illegal activities including possible tax fraud. Rather than allow an investigation by the board to happen, BenHur Lee (BHL), disrupted the board meeting and then disbanded the board. On July 5th, 2011, he forcibly took over the elementary campus during a session of summer school, and brought in hired goons. He changed the locks, froze the corporate bank accounts, physically intimidated the staff, and began removing financial documents from the school.
The Beijing Education Commission stepped in, and handed over the keys to the school back to the headmaster and board member, and asked the headmaster to open the school on time after this disruption. He agreed, as did the staff on the condition that BHL would remove himself as the legal representative and step down. BHL, in writing, agreed to this, and the school year began.
However, only a few short days after to agreeing to this, BHL decided that he was not going to remove himself. He left the bank accounts frozen, and the teachers essentially went without pay from August until January with one month of pay.
During this time the headmaster and other board members were trying to use legal means to remove BHL from any authority over the school. During this process, BHL arrived at school with two other individuals, and violently assaulted the headmaster in the lobby of the elementary school--during school hours. (Most of this incident was recorded on video.) The headmasters laptop was also stolen, in an effort by BHL to disrupt any investigation against him. The police, sided with BHL as he was technically the legal representative. They did not pursue any assault charges against him. School was suspended, and security cameras were installed. It was then only a few days later that BHL, upon not being allowed into the building kicked down the glass door of the elementary school. (This was also captured on video). Again, the police did not follow through with any charges.
In December, BHL announced that a new board had been formed, and except for himself, did not contain any of the original board members. He then was able to unfreeze the corporate bank accounts and began removing money from them. This included a 6.2 million RMB transfer to an outside company that immediately transferred this money back into BHL's personal account. On the week of December 20th, BHL was arrested by the PSB for financial crimes, including embezzlement. He is as of May 2012, still awaiting trial, but was not held in prison.
Upon threat of action by the Labor Bureau, BHL paid all back pay in January. By this time, he had removed all ~22 million RMB from the corporate account, leaving no money to run the school. The headmaster attempted to suspend school until this was resolved. Several other teachers, in an attempt to keep the kids in school and allow the high school seniors to graduate made a deal with BHL to open school. The headmaster, principals, and several teachers quit. And the rest continued on with school as best they could.
Again, in April BHL did not pay the teachers working at IAB. The teachers have taken their case back to the Labor Bureau, and have since suspended school until further notice. No teachers have been offered a renewal contract, and most have taken other jobs for next year at other schools. IAB does not have an administration, teachers, or staff, and due to these actions the school will not be accredited for next year, and there are many legal and civil lawsuits pending against the owner BHL.
As you can see this was not simply a dispute between management and the owner, but the allegedlly illegal and immoral actions of the owner. Some events here are brief generalizations, but remain true to the narrative of what went wrong. I can back up all of these claims with emails, documents, and videos. I can provide any of these pieces to back up my story, and provide any evidence including the videos. I plan on uploading all of these and the full story to the internet in hopes that people will not be duped into dealing with BHL under false pretenses, partial information or outright lies.
Re: Inside story on the incident at IAB school
I have heard that there was a dispute between the owner and management. I do not know the details though.
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Re: Inside story on the incident at IAB school
Here is a rough outline and a few details of the events at IAB over the last 12 months, but there is too much to tell as the situation is extremely complex.
Various members of the board found that BenHur Lee, The owner/legal representative/board member, had allegedly been involved in various illegal activities including possible tax fraud. Rather than allow an investigation by the board to happen, BenHur Lee (BHL), disrupted the board meeting and then disbanded the board. On July 5th, 2011, he forcibly took over the elementary campus during a session of summer school, and brought in hired goons. He changed the locks, froze the corporate bank accounts, physically intimidated the staff, and began removing financial documents from the school.
The Beijing Education Commission stepped in, and handed over the keys to the school back to the headmaster and board member, and asked the headmaster to open the school on time after this disruption. He agreed, as did the staff on the condition that BHL would remove himself as the legal representative and step down. BHL, in writing, agreed to this, and the school year began.
However, only a few short days after to agreeing to this, BHL decided that he was not going to remove himself. He left the bank accounts frozen, and the teachers essentially went without pay from August until January with one month of pay.
During this time the headmaster and other board members were trying to use legal means to remove BHL from any authority over the school. During this process, BHL arrived at school with two other individuals, and violently assaulted the headmaster in the lobby of the elementary school--during school hours. (Most of this incident was recorded on video.) The headmasters laptop was also stolen, in an effort by BHL to disrupt any investigation against him. The police, sided with BHL as he was technically the legal representative. They did not pursue any assault charges against him. School was suspended, and security cameras were installed. It was then only a few days later that BHL, upon not being allowed into the building kicked down the glass door of the elementary school. (This was also captured on video). Again, the police did not follow through with any charges.
In December, BHL announced that a new board had been formed, and except for himself, did not contain any of the original board members. He then was able to unfreeze the corporate bank accounts and began removing money from them. This included a 6.2 million RMB transfer to an outside company that immediately transferred this money back into BHL's personal account. On the week of December 20th, BHL was arrested by the PSB for financial crimes, including embezzlement. He is as of May 2012, still awaiting trial, but was not held in prison.
Upon threat of action by the Labor Bureau, BHL paid all back pay in January. By this time, he had removed all ~22 million RMB from the corporate account, leaving no money to run the school. The headmaster attempted to suspend school until this was resolved. Several other teachers, in an attempt to keep the kids in school and allow the high school seniors to graduate made a deal with BHL to open school. The headmaster, principals, and several teachers quit. And the rest continued on with school as best they could.
Again, in April BHL did not pay the teachers working at IAB. The teachers have taken their case back to the Labor Bureau, and have since suspended school until further notice. No teachers have been offered a renewal contract, and most have taken other jobs for next year at other schools. IAB does not have an administration, teachers, or staff, and due to these actions the school will not be accredited for next year, and there are many legal and civil lawsuits pending against the owner BHL.
As you can see this was not simply a dispute between management and the owner, but the allegedlly illegal and immoral actions of the owner. Some events here are brief generalizations, but remain true to the narrative of what went wrong. I can back up all of these claims with emails, documents, and videos. I can provide any of these pieces to back up my story, and provide any evidence including the videos. I plan on uploading all of these and the full story to the internet in hopes that people will not be duped into dealing with BHL under false pretenses, partial information or outright lies.
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Re: Inside story on the incident at IAB school
Why does none of this surprise me?
Ann Thompson "Miss Ann"
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