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This podcast is supported by FX's English Teacher, a new comedy from executive producers of What We Do in the Shadows and Baskets. English Teacher follows Evan, a teacher in Austin, Texas, who learns if it's really possible to be your full self at your job, while often finding himself at the intersection of the personal, professional, and political aspects of working at a high school. FX's English Teacher premieres September 2nd on FX. Stream on Hulu.
Hello everybody. Here again to let you know that the Swindled Corporation is currently on summer break. But never fear, the show will return with a brand new episode during the first week of August. In the meantime, enjoy this bonus episode about a former Shark Tank contestant who reinvented the belt and then turned out to be a major creep. Classic.
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This episode of Swindled may contain graphic descriptions or audio recordings of disturbing events which may not be suitable for all audiences. Listener discretion is advised.
What makes you tick? What keeps you going? What makes you feel like you're a part of something greater?
going where there is no trail and blazing their own path. We celebrate the motivated, the industrious, the driven. We support those keeping their dream alive. We are committed to preserving the values of hard work, dedication, and good times. Our mission is to create the highest quality of goods and better the world by giving a hand up to those in need. Do good, look good, feel good. Mission Belt.
That overly dramatic advertisement is for a belt. Yep, a belt. The fashion accessory slash necessity that wraps around your waist to keep your pants in place. Hardly revolutionary, right? Wrong. The mission belt was no ordinary belt. Instead of the traditional buckle system with the holes that stretch out and wear out,
The mission belt uses a ratchet system with no holes at all that can be adjusted every quarter inch. Basically a giant zip tie for your pants that can better accommodate a body in constant transition. Mission belts are leather. They're super. They're fantastic. And it's the best belt you'll ever have. If it's not, send me an email personally and I will refund your money or replace you with a different belt. Call me anytime. My name's Nate and I love the mission belts. Thanks for being part of the mission.
That's Nate Holzapfel. He co-founded and self-funded the Mission Belt company with his brother and a business partner when he was 33 years old. Like all ingenious startups, they said it started in a garage in Orem, Utah in June 2012.
The company's mission was to sell a different kind of belt, obviously, but also to make the world a better place. One dollar from every sale was donated to charity that provided interest-free loans to small businesses in developing countries. Hi, I'm Nate Holzapfel, and I make the coolest belt in the world, the Mission Belt, which is awesome in so many different ways. The Mission Belt company readily acknowledged that similar products already existed, but that hardly mattered.
Being successful in business is often less about innovation and more about marketing. And that's where Nate Holzapfel really shined. Nate fancied himself an expert salesman. He was undoubtedly, deludedly confident and obnoxiously persistent. The kind of guy who just wouldn't take no for an answer.
That approach proved moderately successful for the Mission Belt Company in its early days. The company grossed $30,000 in revenue during its first three months. They partnered with local department stores in Utah, and missionaries for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints adopted the Mission Belt for their own missions. Finally, something else to talk about when they're knocking on your door.
The early sales were encouraging. Clearly, Nate Holzapfel and company were onto something, but they lacked the resources to take Mission Belt to the next level. They needed connections, licensors, manufacturers, distributors. They needed some kind of partner who had experience building successful businesses. Fortunately for the Mission Belt company, there was a place on TV where they could obtain all of the above.
Next into the tank is Nate Holzapfel with a new twist to a common man's accessory.
Shark Tank, ABC's hit reality television show where aspiring entrepreneurs pitch their businesses to a panel of potential investors, such as Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban, Damien John, the founder and CEO of FUBU, and Lori Greiner, also known as the queen of home shopping network QVC.
Nate Holzapfel wasn't familiar with the show, but people kept telling him to check it out. He couldn't stop watching it when he finally did. It was a perfect opportunity to meet an investor who could scale Mission: Belt into a massive company. And at the very least, Mission: Belt would be presented to millions of new viewers and potential customers. Nate Holzapfel was more than prepared to showcase his salesmanship.
In a season 4 episode of Shark Tank, which aired in late April 2013, he made his pitch. Hi Sharks, I'm Nate Holzapfel and I'm founder of the Mission Belt Company and we're seeking $50,000 in exchange for 20% equity in our company. Nate was masterful, impressing the investors early by telling them he had sold 20 Mission Belts door to door as soon as he arrived in LA to appear on the show. He was quick, charming, and funny.
At least funny enough to elicit a chuckle from the average mouth breather watching network TV at home. Now sharks, I'm a big husky guy.
and keeping my pants on is a full-time job. He showed them how the belt worked, told them how it was manufactured, the early sales numbers, and the connection to charity. Nate had answers to all the panel's questions and expressed what the company needed in his final plea. With the right Rolodex, I'm not asking anyone to sell this belt for me. We don't need to hire Salesforce. I am a salesperson. Ultimately, Nate Holzapfel and Mission Belt struck a deal with Damon John. $50,000 for 37.5% ownership.
With that kind of salesman, Mr. John knew he would get a return on his investment in no time. I'm happier about being in business with him. You should be. Yeah, he's gonna call me every morning and say, "Hey, why'd you get up and do something?" Mission Belt earned $1 million in revenue within three weeks of the airing of that Shark Tank episode. By the end of the year, the company was at $3 million in sales. Three years later, Mission Belt had $25 million in revenue.
This is Nate Holzapfel.
And it's fascinating, it's, you know, because I'm like a pseudo kind of a fake celebrity, right? As a newly minted pseudo-celebrity, 36-year-old Nate Holzapfel left his post at Mission Belt to pursue a career in TV and public speaking. He launched a personal website promoting himself as an expert in sales training, coaching, pitch creation, search engine optimization, online marketing and social media strategy, and more.
A lot of it's really just things that I've learned from other people and I've assimilated them. I'm a really good student. You know, I learned Spanish in six months. Muy impresionante, pendejo. Have you any advice? Be decisive. It's the key.
Be decisive, he says. Don't wait around. Take what you want. No need for consent. Just ask Larry King. What's that? Oh, he's dead? Oh. Okay, fine. I'll tell you.
As a favor to a family member, Larry King filmed a mock interview with Nate Holzapfel for the limited use in Nate's sizzle reel that would be submitted to TV producers privately. Instead, Nate used the interview footage to promote his services and plastered fictitious quotes attributed to King on his website. Larry King sued Nate Holzapfel when he caught wind of the misuse of the mock interview, alleging trademark infringement, unfair competition, and more.
King won a default judgment in 2019 for $250,000 plus $8,600 in legal fees.
It was a slimy move from Nate Holzapfel, but it paled in comparison to what came next. Last season, Nate Holzapfel came to the Shark Tank with his innovative company, the Mission Belt. It's like a giant zip tie for your pants. And scored a deal with Damon John. Damon, I'd be crazy to not want a partner like you. I accept 100%. My man. Let's see what he's up to now. Let's see what he's up to now. What is up?
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Courtney Morton was struggling in February 2020 when Nate Holzapfel randomly messaged her on Instagram. The 46-year-old divorced breast cancer survivor was spending all her time and energy caring for her wheelchair-bound special needs adult son, and her father had recently passed away. "I was lonely," Courtney admitted to the Daily Beast. She said what started out as harmless small talk with a random man in her DMs quickly turned romantic.
He knew exactly what to say. I was in a very vulnerable position. After three weeks of constant communication, Nate Holzapfel asked Courtney Morton if they could meet in person at her house. Typically, Courtney would never agree to meet a stranger in private, but COVID was emerging as a global threat at the time.
It was a risky move, but it seemed to pay off. Courtney Morton really liked Nate, the man who knew just all the right things to say. He would say things like...
The relationship grew more serious by the day. Part of moving forward together involved selling Courtney's house, which had been modified to accommodate her disabled son.
Nate Holzapfel told Courtney that he did not want to live in a home where her ex once lived. Courtney said she understood his reasoning and was open to moving. So on May 14, 2020, Nate Holzapfel surprised Courtney Morton with a date to the title company. He had paperwork prepared to transfer the ownership of Courtney's home to a company he controlled called Save My House LLC.
He told her doing so would protect her $200,000 in equity from capital gains taxes which, in reality, would not even apply in this case. Even ignorant of tax law, Courtney Morton hesitated to sign the papers. A title company employee later said it was evident that she was uncomfortable, but Courtney eventually gave in and signed anyway. She loved Nate Holzapfel and was excited about their future.
Nate estimated that Courtney would receive about $230,000 from selling her home. He said he would give her about half of it in cash and invest the other half in Bristle and Beard LLC, a company Nate told her he owned but, in reality, did not even exist at the time. Within weeks, Courtney Morton got cold feet. She asked Nate to transfer the ownership of the home back to her. Nate ignored her. Unbeknownst to Courtney, he had already listed the property, which sold by the end of August 2020.
Nate Holzapfel deposited the proceeds, about $208,000, into a business account controlled by a different LLC registered in Alaska to Nate and his wife. That's right, Nate Holzapfel was already married with two kids. Within weeks, he used the proceeds from the sale of Courtney Morton's home to pay off personal debts. He paid his car loan, attorney fees, credit card bills, and even bought a few guns.
When Courtney Morton discovered he had sold her home, Nate refused to provide her with any paperwork or even tell her how much it had sold for. He gave her about $11,000 so that she could move into a small apartment with her son. In November 2020, Courtney Morton told Nate Holzapfel that she planned to contact the police. After that, he disappeared entirely.
Deanne Jansen had also been through some shit. The 53-year-old hospice worker's husband died 13 months before matching with Nate Holzapfel on Tinder during the summer of 2021.
Like Courtney Morton, Deanne chatted consistently with Nate for a few weeks before he suggested meeting at her house. Deanne relented. She relented again when Nate pressured her for sex. Afterwards, even more red flags emerged.
During that first meeting, Deanne Jansen says Nate Holzapfel stayed at her house for eight hours. He sat butt naked on her sofa for much of that time. He talked about his ex-wife and his companies and his father who he claimed was a high-ranking member of the Mormon church. He also mentioned how much he admired Hitler and his leadership style. Lady, lock your doors.
Instead, Deanne says she continued to see Nate Holzapfel, and about a month into their relationship, he convinced her to invest $50,000 of her late husband's life insurance policy into one of his companies called Bristol & Beard. He promised Deanne she would receive a 10% return for the next four to five years, and then she would receive a $1 million payout after he sold the company.
Deanne was reluctant, but Nate Holzapfel was persistent. Eventually she went to the bank, withdrew $50,000 and handed it over. Nate also sold her car and her AR-15. Before long, like Courtney Morton, Deanne eventually came to her senses and wanted the money back, but he would always change the subject. So in October 2021, Deanne Jansen googled his name.
She found a post on Reddit by Courtney Morton, who was warning other women in Utah about Nate Holzapfel. Courtney told Deanne that she had already filed charges against Nate, but the police had been unable to find him. Nate's wife, who lived in an apartment in Orem with their children, was uncooperative. The license on Nate Holzapfel's driver's license belonged to a La Quinta Inn, where he was not staying. Another address he used pointed to a UPS store in Provo.
Oh really, Deanne responded to Courtney, because I'm having lunch with him tomorrow at Carl's Jr. That was our date spot, Deanne Jansen told the Daily Beast. We would go to Carl's Jr., Big Spender.
The next day, Deanne drove to that Carl's Jr. one last time and parked across the street. She watched Nate Holzapfel arrive. Then she watched the Provo police move in. He brought in millions of dollars with his hit mission belts from Shark Tank. But the Utah County Attorney's Office says a married Nathaniel Holzapfel preyed on a vulnerable woman. 42-year-old Nate Holzapfel was charged with three counts of fraud related to selling Courtney Morton's home.
He remained in jail for 90 minutes before bailing out with $20,000 cash. Local law enforcement publicly asked for other victims to come forward.
Plenty of them did. Nate Holzapfel stole one divorcee's diamond wedding ring and a 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee. He persuaded another woman to invest $100,000 into one of his non-existent businesses. Holzapfel charged $9,000 to another woman's credit card without her permission. This man was a predator in more than one way.
Three other women came forward with allegations of sex crimes against Nate Holzapfel. He allegedly groped a minor at a concert in July 2021. Later that year, he groped and exposed himself to an employee on three different occasions. Before that, Nate Holzapfel allegedly pinned a woman against a truck against her will and violated her.
Sammy Turnbow is her name. She went public with her story to encourage other women not to be ashamed. Sammy said Holzapfel had eavesdropped on a conversation in public and later retrieved her phone number from Facebook and agreed to meet to talk business. During the assault he warned her, "If I wanted to rape you, I would have done it already. Relax." "This guy is a sexual predator," Sammy told the Daily Beast. "This is a power trip for him. I used to say that Hitler was his hero.
In March 2022, Nate Holzapfel was further charged with two counts of forcible sexual abuse, a second-degree felony, and two counts of theft related to his various schemes. In May 2022, Holzapfel was hit with additional fraud charges. In total, he faced 15 felony and five misdemeanors.
Mission Belt released a statement: "Nade Holzapfel has not been associated with Mission Belt for more than seven years and has no dealings with any of its employees, managers, or customers. Nade Holzapfel does not represent Mission Belt in any capacity. We are passionate about belts and our mission to give a hand up to those in need. Nade Holzapfel does not represent Mission Belt or its values.
On June 21, 2023, Nate Holzapfel pleaded guilty to three counts of communications fraud and three counts of sexual battery. Seventeen other charges against him were dismissed in exchange for the plea, and the felony forcible sexual abuse charges were reduced to sexual battery, meaning he would not be required to register as a sex offender in Utah.
As part of his plea, Nate Holzapfel agreed to pay back $300,000 in restitution to his victims and serve four years probation. A clause in the plea agreement stated that if the judge didn't accept the deal, Nate could withdraw his plea. On August 7, 2023, Nate Holzapfel arrived at his sentencing hearing with his two children, thinking he would be walking out shortly.
Against his counsel's advice, he stopped to have a word with local NBC affiliate KSL TV. During the hearing, several of Holzapfel's victims gave a statement.
Courtney Morton told the judge that Nate Holzapfel was a predator. "He preys upon the very most vulnerable in society. I implore you to please put a stop to this today." Deanne Jansen described how her encounter with Nate Holzapfel had wreaked havoc on her life, emotionally and financially. She said she had to work two jobs just to get by. "My life has forever been changed as a result of swiping right, matching with a married man on a dating website."
Sammy Turnbow told the court that she spoke because she felt like there's a culture of victim shaming in America. Quote, And what I realized is I don't need to be embarrassed for that. I do not need to be embarrassed because the predator came and attacked me and assaulted me for nearly 45 minutes in a parking lot.
Then, Nate Holzapfel was allowed to speak. He referred to the victims as quote "the nicest people in the whole darn world. Just lovely, nice people." He said he was sorry they were quote "drug into this."
Judge Thomas Lowe could also understand why. The treachery and the abuse that has occurred over time, the life-altering impacts you have had on these victims, are shocking, he told Holzapfel before rejecting the negotiated plea deal.
In that case, Holzapfel's defense lawyer countered, "My client will withdraw his guilty plea, per the clause." "If the court's indicating that it's not going to follow the recommendation as presented, then Mr. Hossville has a right to withdraw his guilty plea." "He does not have a right to withdraw his guilty pleas." "Nope. Sorry. It doesn't work like that," Judge Lowe responded. The guilty plea remained, and Nate Holzapfel was sentenced to a maximum of 15 years in prison.
Judge Lowe said that Holzapfel will likely be out in less than two years and can start working to pay back $300,000 to his victims. His victims were overjoyed with the turn of events. Nate Holzapfel was handcuffed and led away. It felt like justice, but also so much more. This is Sammy Turnbow. That man is now going to prison, and that was not the case this morning. As he's in cuffs, and I am finally free.
Swindled is written, researched, produced, and hosted by me, a concerned citizen, with original music by Trevor Howard, a.k.a. Deformer. If you want to hear more bonus episodes like this one, become a valued listener at valuedlistener.com. Thanks for your support.
My name is Brachelle Anderson from Olive Branch, Mississippi. My name is Taylor from Rochester, New York. My name is Dan from Sydney. And I am a concerned citizen and a valued listener. Hey. Bye. Eat the rich.
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