HOUSTON – Patrick Brown told KPRC 2 reporter Corley Peel he was asleep at his mother’s house when investigators showed up around 4:00 a.m. Wednesday.
In the surveillance video at the home, you can hear deputies asking Brown to walk out with his hands up before they took him into custody.
Brown is among 53 people indicted in connection to the bail bond scheme involving the Houston bonding company, AABLE Bonds. The company has been under investigation for years and is accused falsifying financial reports before submitting them to government and insurance agencies to get bonds for jailed defendants.
Sources say some of those defendants committed more crimes after bonding out. Many of those cases involve violent offenders, according to records.
After his federal court hearing on Thursday, Brown told Corley that he was not aware the bonding company was accused or involved in suspicious activity.
Brown’s mother, Yvette, said her son told her about AABLE Bonds while he was in jail roughly two years ago.
“He called and said, ‘We have a bail bond and guaranteed to get me out.’ His bond was so high. So, we called the people, and they guaranteed to get my son out. I was desperately trying to get my child out of jail,” Yvette said.
Brown was released from jail. He said had a payment plan with the bond company.
“I know how the bond people work,” Brown said. “If you bring them 19 or 20 thousand [dollars], you’ve got to pay the payment plan. So, that’s what I did. I got out, and I was two months out, paying payments to them.”
His brother, Michael Ford and his uncle, Cornelius Brown, were also arrested in this case. They are accused of wire fraud by falsifying paystubs that were sent electronically. Despite the investigation, Brown thinks high of AABLE bonds.
“I’m not downing that bonding company,” Brown said. “That’s a good bonding company because they help a bunch of people out. They should have handled their paperwork right.”
Majority of the people who were in court on Thursday were released, including Brown. They are expected to have a bond hearing on Tuesday.