By MATT OTT

Patrick James, the former CEO of bankrupt auto parts supplier First Brands Group, was indicted on federal fraud charges and arrested Thursday in Ohio with his brother Edward, a former senior executive with the company, the government said.

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The indictment from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York said the James brothers “perpetrated a yearslong fraud” to obtains billions of dollars for First Brands — and millions for themselves — by duping investors and banks with fake documents and false financial reports.

When it filed for bankruptcy protection in September, officials representing First Brands said the company had more than $9 billion in debt and only $12 million in cash, according to Thursday’s charging documents.

After changing its name to First Brands from Crowne Group about five years ago, the Cleveland company began buying and then cobbling together a number of aftermarket auto parts manufacturers through debt-financed deals. Acquisitions by First Brands included well-known industry brands like Fram filters, Autolite sparkplugs and Anco windshield wiper blades.

The government alleges that the James brothers falsely inflated invoices for accounts receivable and borrowed against them two and three times, unbeknownst to lenders and investors. This yielded billions of dollars of financing for the company, which the James brothers used to finance a lavish lifestyle, the indictment said.

“The defendants operated First Brands as a ‘Ponzi’ scheme in which new loan proceeds were used to pay back old lenders and to fund their extravagant lifestyle,” said Kareem Carter, an agent with the Internal Revenue Service.

A spokesperson for James said “Patrick James is presumed innocent and denies these charges. He built First Brands from nothing into a global industry leader and has always been devoted to the success of the company. Mr. James looks forward to presenting his case in court.”

A lawsuit brought against Patrick James in November accused the former First Brands CEO of securing billions of dollars in debt financing based in part on fraudulent invoices, then transferring hundreds of millions of dollars to himself and other affiliates to “fund his and his family’s lavish lifestyle,” which includes seven homes and 17 cars.

The lawsuit claims that James, with the help of unnamed conspirators, transferred $8 million to his son-in-law’s wellness company, $2 million for James’ family office, at least $3 million toward the rent of his New York City townhouse, $500,000 to his personal chef and another $150,000 for a “celebrity personal trainer,” the lawsuit claimed.

The majority of the transfers occurred between 2023 and 2025, according to the lawsuit.

The indictment released on Thursday also revealed a guilty plea from former First Brands executive Andy Brumbergs for his role in the scheme. Brumbergs is cooperating with the government.

Patrick James, 61, and his brother Edward, 60, each face nine counts, including wire fraud, bank fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Most of the charges carry a maximum sentence of 30 years if convicted. Patrick, the former CEO, is also facing a potential life sentence.

They are scheduled to appear before a judge in Ohio later Thursday, according to the indictment.

A day of strikes and protests is planned again for Friday to protest President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown and the fatal shootings of two people by U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement agents in Minneapolis.

After last week’s economic blackout and protest in Minnesota, this week organizers are aiming for a national strike.

“The people of the Twin Cities have shown the way for the whole country to stop ICE’s reign of terror. We need to shut it down,” according to a post on the website Nationalshutdown.org, which is helping publicize the day of “no school, no work and no shopping.”

A map posted on the website shows hundreds of protests happening across the country, including a 2 p.m. march in downtown Minneapolis.

Last week, more than 10,000 people marched through the streets of downtown Minneapolis to the Target Center for a rally to demand ICE operations cease in Minnesota.

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Somali and Black student organizations in Minnesota then launched a call for a “nationwide day of action,” and officials from nearly 2,000 organizations have said they plan to participate, including labor, community and student organizations, as well as hundreds of small businesses, organizers say.

“I’m here to continue showing the undeniable power of student voices,” Gutu Chinksso, president of the Black Student Union at the University of Minnesota, said in a statement.

“The voices that refuse to be ignored and refuse to be silenced to remind people that students are not passive,” Chinksso said. “We are organized. We are informed and ready to lead. We are advocating, not just for ourselves, but for every community harmed by violence.”

The call for a second nationwide strike comes in response to the shooting death of Alex Pretti, 37, of Minneapolis, on Jan. 24, while he was filming Border Patrol officers conducting an immigration enforcement operation.

Pretti’s death followed the Jan. 7 death of Minneapolis resident Renee Good, a mother of three shot by an ICE officer.

FAT Brands — the owner of multiple restaurant chains including Johnny Rockets, Fatburger and Twin Peaks — has filed for bankruptcy amid debt of more than $1 billion.

The franchiser filed for Chapter 11 on Monday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, according to Fox Business.

FAT operates 18 restaurant brands with more than 2,200 locations. The company said it expects its restaurants to remain open as usual during the bankruptcy proceedings.

Twin Peaks Hospitality Group, a subsidiary that was spun off last year to oversee the Twin Peaks sports bar chain, also filed for bankruptcy, according to a press release. The “mountain-lodge-themed Hooters” has 114 locations across the U.S. and Mexico.

The filings come just months after FAT Brands announced plans to expand Fatburger, despite its estimated $1.5 billion debt — much of which was incurred through acquisitions.

FAT’s other restaurant concepts include Fazoli’s, Great American Cookies, Hot Dog on a Stick, Ponderosa Steakhouse and more.

Industry-wide, customers have shied away from dine-in restaurants in recent years because of inflation and other economic uncertainty that have lead to many reducing their spending.

FAT specifically has seen fewer franchises open because of that same cost-consciousness, slowing the amount of revenue it receives from new locations opening and paying the parent company royalties and other fees.

“The Chapter 11 process will enable us to strengthen our balance sheet and create financial flexibility to advance this growth,” FAT Brands CEO Andrew Wiederhorn said in a statement.

After rallying back this week from a seemingly insurmountable deficit, the Wild managed to force overtime against the Chicago Blackhawks, where they eventually prevailed in a shootout.

The thrilling comeback further highlighted a recurring trend.

Though the Wild have established themselves as Stanley Cup contenders since acquiring superstar defenseman Quinn Hughes last month, they have been to overtime in nearly half the games he has been in uniform.

“There have been a lot of tight games the past couple of weeks,” veteran winger Marcus Foligno said. “I don’t know if it’s us not trying to finish the job. There have been times where we’ve had some good starts and we haven’t had goals to show for it. That’s helped a team maybe stick around, and it’s kind of bit us a little bit.”

That helps explain why the Wild (30-14-10, 70 points) only had 19 regulation wins heading into their matchup with the Calgary Flames on Thursday night at Grand Casino Arena.

That total paled in comparison to the other top teams in the Central Division, as the Colorado Avalanche (35-7-9, 79 points) had 32 regulation wins before playing the Montreal Canadiens, while the Dallas Stars (30-14-9, 69 points) had 26 regulation wins before playing the Vegas Golden Knights.

It was actually more in line with the bottom teams in the Central Division, as the Winnipeg Jets (21-24-7, 49 points) had 19 regulation wins before playing the Tampa Bay Lightning, while the St. Louis Blues (19-25-9, 47 points) had 18 regulation wins before playing the Florida Panthers.

There’s a reason the Wild don’t have more regulation wins under their belt. No team in the NHL has been to overtime more this season.

Obviously, the Wild deserve credit for finding a way to come out on top once they reach overtime; it’s the biggest reason they’ve been able to establish themselves among the top teams in the NHL.

“I wouldn’t read too much into that,” center Nico Sturm said. “I think it’s a little bit of an outlier.”

Or maybe the Wild are the outlier in their current form. Currently, they’re on pace for 29 regulation wins, which would be by far the lowest total for a Stanley Cup champion since COVID shortened a pair of campaigns during the pandemic.

— In 2021-22, the Stanley Cup champion Avalanche finished with 46 regulation wins.

— In 2022-23, the Stanley Cup champion Golden Knights had 38 regulation wins.

— In 2023-24, the Stanley Cup champion Panthers had 42 regulation wins.

— In 2024-25, the Stanley Cup championship Panthers had 37 regulation wins.

Though it’s not necessarily a prerequisite for hoisting the hardware, the Wild would represent something of a statistical anomaly if they went on to win the Stanley Cup this season without notching regulation wins with more regularity.

Asked last week about how much Wild have been to overtime, head coach John Hynes pushed back on the notion that his players are content getting there, saying, “We’re trying to win in 60 minutes.”

That seems like it would be a good idea.

Briefly

Though he was on the ice for morning skate before the Wild played the Flames, veteran defenseman Zach Bogosian wasn’t ready to return from a lower body injury and was set to miss his 11th straight game. He’s getting closer; he’s just not quite there.

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