.floatimg-left-hort { float:left; } .floatimg-left-caption-hort { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:300px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-vert { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right:15px; width:200px;} .floatimg-left-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; font-size: 12px; width:200px;} .floatimg-right-hort { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px;} .floatimg-right-caption-hort { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px; font-size: 12px; } .floatimg-right-vert { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px;} .floatimg-right-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; font-size: 12px; } .floatimgright-sidebar { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; border-top-style: double; border-top-color: black; border-bottom-style: double; border-bottom-color: black;} .floatimgright-sidebar p { line-height: 115%; text-indent: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar h4 { font-variant:small-caps; } .pullquote { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 150px; background: url(http://www.dmbusinessdaily.com/DAILY/editorial/extras/closequote.gif) no-repeat bottom right !important ; line-height: 150%; font-size: 125%; border-top: 1px solid; border-bottom: 1px solid;} .floatvidleft { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatvidright { float:right; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} A former business partner of bankrupt developer James Myers pleaded guilty to federal charges that he defrauded investors in a condominium project the two men launched in Minneapolis.

Brett Thielen admitted to participating in a $2.5 million fraud involving himself and two other investors in which they bought units in Sexton Lofts through third parties, then resold the units at markups of between 30 and 80 percent, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported.

Under the scheme, the units would be flipped, or sold to unqualified buyers, at prices based on phony appraisals.

According to records in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis, Thielen was charged in November 2008 and entered a guilty plea a month later. The plea was unsealed, or made available to the public, March 5.

Sexton Lofts was a project in which Myers and Thielen, through their development companies, planned to build 123 condominium units in an 88-year-old apartment building. In addition, they planned to build an enclosed garage that would have more housing units in its upper floors.

However, the project failed when Bank of the West called in a $26 million construction loan and placed the project under receivership.

When the Business Record wrote about the Sexton Lofts project in 2007 and the investigation of Thielen, federal prosecutors said that Myers was not a target of their probe.

Myers’ is “absolutely not” a target of the investigation, Steve Wandro, his attorney, said.

Myers and other Greater Des Moines business partners have been ordered by a Minnesota state court judge to pay more than $8 million on the loan.

A ruling is pending in a civil lawsuit that claims Myers owes nearly $700,000 to investors.

Those plaintiffs also have filed a claim in Myers’ $184 million bankruptcy case, saying that the debt should not be dropped along with other debts that stand to be discharged in the case.

Myers was a principal of Regency Homes when it and related companies were shuttered in 2007.