You are right, where is the money?
And not a little, but no one knows how much Taft as squandered.

I continue to be puzzled by the stance of Steve and his cadre. Specially, since there are indications of neglect at farms and operations.
A real sad story.
The situation of TATF and its people deserves denunciation and it is appalling.

If you still believe in the tooth ferry of TATf returns.
Be careful with sending your money to a foreign country, even if the individual is a "god fearing person". It seems to be a large among of fearing individuals these days hitting the scandal board and the filling the lists of the corrupts.

Bottom line, walk away from any structure similar to TATF.

You can thank the posters here from saving millions perspective
suckers.

PS Plantation Teak prices continue its decline.

You can obtain a full report (including price and volume trends) of market activity in the forestry sector at www.itto.com
You can subscribe for free, it is called the IMS report.

If you need a full list of my other sources for market pricing, buyers and sellers, consult my past posts in the other ihub board related to timber.

Costa Rica Teak (farm grown) prices continue at record lows, from $350 to $500 per cubic meter that is for 15 to 25 year old mix.
Sales of board and logs continue at record lows.
India is picking up most of the farm teak. Certified Teak is slightly higher.

Present market prices are at a discrepancy of around 800% from TATF published prices.

All other trees sold by TATF have no present market.

Duped you write "Steve has only to abide by what is written in my spanish written contract."

So you got an special written contract that no other has received!

LOL!!!

Does anyone receive any info from the FBI about their TATF complaints?

Let us know if you can talk with anyone.

We also have been getting the answering machine.

To my surprise all the phones including the one I had as direct contact (Steve') to he office are directed to the answering machine, then I tried all others numbers and various faxes, we could not get anyone.
The main office number I was given by the office manager is 506 256 5161. The other ones are the same as posted in the webpage.

WHICH PART Duped DOES NOT UNDERSTAND, THAT:
1) I am Costa Rica now, there is no one at the TATF claimed address of business.
2) Business has stopped operations. TATF is kaput, niet TAFT kapot, zippo, cero, niente!!!

It is fact TATF shut down operations.

I doubt you got an answer on a Saturday.
Since when there are people answering phones Saturdays?
Really, let us know when you can get a real person to answer your call.

We might get something going since TATF sold products that were called to be fitted for IRA in the USA.
Now, anyone who got IRA TATF trees will need to initiate the legal claim.

You said you called yesterday!

You claim to have spoke with Steve using the phones listed in the TATF web page.

I challenge everybody to call those numbers to see if you get an answer. Can you post your results of your calls!!!

In the past, the numbers listed would ring and a message with the Monday to Friday schedule would play. Now, they do not go to an answering machine, and they are not answered.

At the address provided by TATF web-site there is nothing there.
It was not a holiday in CR when I tried to locate anyone from TATF.

TATF is literally out of business as an operating entity.
I have tried to get a local lawyer to give me an assessment.
It seems that unless the local police is willing to issue a warrant, there is little hope.
Accessing the farms to claim the trees is impossible because we do not own the land, and there is little control to stop TATF from selling the land and the trees.
Good luck with you phone calls to TAFT....

TATF has stopped operations.
Duped I do not know who you are.
I just came from San Jose CR and I could not locate anyone at the address provided by TATF.
No one answered the phones provided and no person could direct me to locate anyone involved with TATF.

Iroco is not teak.
Using Iroco in comparison to teak is intent to deceit.

Iroco aka African teak has nothing to do with Teak sp. Tectona Grandis.
Iroco is wood that is named African teak from traders that try to convince people into using it instead of Teak in boat and furniture building at lower price rates. Iroko is the utility lumber of the tropical hardwood species. A durable wood, it is largely used for non-decorative purposes, and the oily texture indicates its usefulness for boat building and pilings.

Iroco use as a replacement for Teak is a fools engagement.
Teak (Tectona Grandis) and "African Teak" Iroco (Clorophora Excelsa) are two different trees with excessive different characteristics and prices.

In fact in England Iroco es forbidden due to its carcinogenic characteristics.

You can buy Iroco fully finish for flooring for around $2.25 per board ft.

If you are really curious for what Iroco is mostly used check:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Txalaparta

About the increase of sales of Iroco, I suggest you read the news about the situation in Ivory Coast and Cameroon from where most of the Iroco comes from.

Let's have it clear:
Some trees do exist. As in many scams you need to have lemons to make lemonade.
This does not mean that all the trees do exist nor all called lemonades have lemon.
Some employees claim that not all 2006 teak sold do exist.
The persons who made the statement seemed to be familiar in tree relations and the other as a forester.
Let's call them I&J were adamant to prove it, specifying some planting areas, where the encounter discrepancies while dealing with people.
It was shame that they were very afraid to officially to come fully forward.
But there is caveat, it is called Whistleblower protections and 30% reward for the individual who helps uncover a fraud.
Here is where it starts to get interesting.
More on this later.
The next obstacle was when TATF refused to allow to visit those areas specified by I&J by an expert.
AS of today, there is no possible way to reconcile what each tree sold do actually exist.

Now comes the real culprit that makes TATF stink to scam: money.
Add to the mix the prior statements of I&J, the experience of many people with 1996 teak (and many other plantings)we have not received a penny, since the claiming of a first thinning 7 years ago for the 1996 teak. This past year should have been the third thinning report and check, and nothing has appear, no a report empty words from the office on the status, nor a single call back about it or an email with the reason while the trees are not been managed.
With all those faults coming from TATF, it does seem obvious that we are confronted with something more than just mismanagement.

Those are top three reasons to think that the Brunners have put a fast one here, and passing it along to his kid.

Time is the judge of all.
In time crooks get caught, in time the honest get rewarded, and the liars fall prey of their lies.
TATF so far is a big lie, no far from a financial scam, but I leave this to the appropriate agencies to determine.

This duped has not clue about international travel much less in Europe. Nothing.
Like in many places it does not requires much effort to locate anyone in any town specially in civilized places.
Hotel centralized reservation and registration systems allows anyone with understanding how to find individuals to make a single phone call to locate any one registered guest in a major hotel chain or pensione in less than a couple hours of its registration.
In Monaco, specially, is super easy, as it is in the rest of France and Spain. In Monaco and France you call the gendarmerie registration de voyageurs in Spain the local guardia civil section of pasajeros y transeuntes and in minutes you have an answer the the individual is in town.
They won't give you more than that, at least, you can find out if the person has arrived to its destination.

Right now, I am with my Ipad in Plaza de Espana de center of Madrid with boquerones, calamares fritos, one racion of serrano and a beer, where are you duped?
I am curious do you know the name of the airport of Madrid?
You ow me more than 20 responses.....even if you answer all of them TATF is still scam.

Never amazes me how the liars fall in their own lies.

Do yo have 30 minutes, I will see you in Madrid.

I am at the RTVE marketing offices doing a project until next week.
You can phone me at the offices there PH: 581 6018. Ask for "The Brazilian" aka "El Brasilero". Or I call you at your hotel, which hotel are you staying?
I am working today until around 14 00.
Then to Botin for Cordero.

Bad news.....Ok I take them as such.
You say you are going to be in Monaco.
I will doing a three day project near Monaco in Grasse just a short 30 miles drive from Monaco.
Are you willing to met me at The Hotel du Paris for drinks, is the big one in the plaza of the casino. I have reservations at the Louis XV restaurant for the 27th dinner. I also have reservations the 28th at La Bastide Saint-Antoine in Grasse where I am staying.
Does that suit you?

First, do not take for granted that legal work is not been done.
Second, suing in Costa Rica has a serious flaw for plaintiffs, the resident in this case TATF can choose the court of their choice.
See TATF webpage purchase contract.
Which judge do you think TATF will choose?

Third, let's see if The State Department and the FBI receives enough complaints to file an international request for action.
Let's see what happen at that point, but like everything in this area, it takes years. Dealing with corrupt governments usually takes a little more. But eventually all comes to light, nothing like a good bath of light to sanitize corruption.

Fourth, the bill of sale as given by TATF is not enforceable in Costa Rica.

You have not own a single tree.

I have more than a few hundred of thousands tied up in this, so do not think that nothing is been done.

I can tell you this blog gets mentioned more than once at day at TATF......and thanks to you the rankings in the subject web searches keeps improving, so thank you for your fact-empty-endless-postings.

Do not worry you will find out the sad news in La Nacion.
http://www.nacion.com/

mjb80 whomever you are,
A1 has done a tremendous job managing this board since inception.
So give it a rest, your tone has crossed the debate line as much as dupedbysteve has done.
Stay focus on facts, I ask you as a personal favor, don't operate in language that assaults and with little facts as dupedbysteve favors. Falling in his bull-trap does not help the truth.
Staying focus on facts is the key, the facts will get your point established and become credible, please scape from the fallacious approach of dupedbysteve and TATF cronies.
Read my posting about Steve's partner.

Someone, I am sure is dupebysteve, is using our posting names here in other board to create confusion, the truth always prevails.

This is like the released papers of the State department, they argue in Washington that they cannot tell the truth to the people, because the truth is too crude for most. Well stay focus in the truth and the facts.
Well, for TATF the untold truths are told here and it is important for this board to stay focus on facts, it has been successful in stopping TATF fraudulent job, otherwise it will not be such series of vitriolic postings by TATF defenders.

You can fool people some time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time.

How do you know that TATF is not under a federal or state agency investigation?

You are not as smart as you think.

All this barrage that you dump here I am sure has someone in San Jose very worry.

I own thousands of trees how many do you own?

Well, at least that is what the swindle my money for.

How many do you? NONE.......as per you.

What are you intentions, you bad person, to direct people towards a scam!!!

The sad part of it: one more day for defrauded TATF tree owners to live with the scam.

Duped, your cacophony is irritating.
You come across as a sycophant in serious need of attention?
This new year, TATF still is a fraudulent operation.
Your grandiloquent verbosity helps to consolidate the people's view that TATF as a real con operation.
So far, TATF scammed more than $50 million from people.
You can keep going the scam and flourish with it......

Very curious about your statements,

"Starting about 15 years ago, we gave blanket agreement to the recommended thinnings by the expert foresters at TATF, as we have no unique knowledge about optimum thinning/harvest strategies nor weather-related considerations (i.e. potential root damage to remaining trees in wet conditions from heavy equipment)."

How it came to be that you granted a blanket statement? Did you have a written communication?
What did you know or what were you told to make such decision?
If you initiated the contact what was your baseline to arrive to such decision?
How can you claim that thinning reports existed in 2010?
"Any thin reports in 2010 were only to manage the lumber export which we sold (did not personally use, nor take personal delivery) with TATF/Raleo/TAH guidance and management."

So you got money in 2010!

The rest of us continue to be conned by TATF.
Sorry, it just does not add up.

You are so inconsistent with your statements that makes nothing less than a mockery....like TATF.

I guess love of company see no ends.

Merry Christmas and a prosperous new year to all !!!

Feliz Navidad y prospero 2011 for those in CR!!

Passez un excellent Noël , et que le champagne Français of course .. coule à flots! For the poster from Bordeaux!:)

NO a single report received here ...EVER.
Since the first missed thinning, a few years back, I started to write-off as a lost investment(and reported to the IRS)my thousands of trees.

ITTO report released
ITTO link
Plantation timber prices paid in Costa Rica FOB:
$350 to $500 per cubic meter or $0.8177 per bd ft. to $1.1168 per bd ft.

Compare that to TATF web site projections.

Link to TATF projections

TATF present projection:
at 0% $3.131 per board ft
at 10% $21.03

TATF overstated discrepancy with market 382.9 % to 1884.4%

Are you obtaining the results you want in this moronic barrage of postings?

I am!!

It could be that you are (or you are not) smart or else you would limit the amount of postings to fact based and substantiative posts.

The quantity of the ignoramus behaviors you continue to show here is astounding, this behavior can only deter anyone for considering TATF.

Now, it could be that you are also doing it as a reverse-dialectic strategy.
I doubt you are that smart!

Great ! You accept that Steve is fooling people with the English contract....at last, at last.....victory at last !!!!

A quick lesson on TATF deceptive ways......

In the contract that people sign:

www.tropicalhardwoods.com/htm/tree_order_forms/forms/tree_order_form.pdf

Clause 5. talks about a single harvesting period for teak and other trees.

Now,in the marketing page, the representation is made that there are more than one harvest but only talks about teak and deceptively:

www.tatf.com/teak_projections.htm

The shenanigan here is so obvious, and TATF has the indecency of no occulting it....

So which one is.......one harvest as in the contract or various as in the webpage?

Do you also realize the present contract has some major changes versus the one was posted a months back.

I will keep you entertained.
Don't worry!!!
TATF does such poor job at been consistent that there is more inconsistencies coming.

I can predict your answer: some empty phrase.

For once, stay focus in the deception as printed and published.

You do not own a single tree.
What are talking about.....what are you qualifications to talk about timber?

I think you need reading and comprehension lessons.

Steve never answer a single question I posted to him, not only he had no balls to answer the facts, Steve and his cronie partner, both avoid facts like you do.
You three specialize in answering with diversions from facts and answering with vagaries and empty words.
I will not let you off the hook either.
Your answers coincidentally are similar to the ones they gave !!!!
You are as fake as they are.
You are even more, because you do not own a single tree, and you claimed in your past posts to have not experience.

If you do not own any tree with TATF, how long do we have to wait for you to own, like us, some of the ordure that TATF sells.
The following are the only possible reasons why you stick around here:
1) You are a paid lyar to spam the board (another garbage business of present days)
2) You are Steve or a paid cronie or his partner.
3) You are a masochist who loves been rebuked here.

Again, when are you going to be a serious tree owner again? If what you claim for the last 100 posts is true!

Where are your cojones!

I think you need reading and comprehension lessons.

Steve never answer a single question I posted to him, not only he had no balls to answer the facts, Steve and his cronie partner, both avoid facts like you do.
You three specialize in answering with diversions from facts and answering with vagaries and empty words.
I will not let you off the hook either.
Your answers coincidentally are similar to the ones they gave !!!!
You are as fake as they are.
You are even more, because you do not own a single tree, and you claimed in your past posts to have not experience.

If you do not own any tree with TATF, how long do we have to wait for you to own, like us, some of the ordure that TATF sells.
The following are the only possible reasons why you stick around here:
1) You are a paid lyar to spam the board (another garbage business of present days)
2) You are Steve or a paid cronie or his partner.
3) You are a masochist who loves been rebuked here.

Again, when are you going to be a serious tree owner again? If what you claim for the last 100 posts is true!

Where are your cojones!

What do you know if you do not own trees or have relationship with TATF.

Or do you?

Explain your fantastic assertions assertions!!!!

To have a basic idea of what I know, I suggest you read my past two years of postings.

So, you learned from S Brunner misrepresentations.
Get a better teacher......specially since you are NOT a tree owner.

Still I have not seen a penny or a report from TATF and my trees are overdue for multiple thinnings.....
This TATF con-job is getting too old.

Let's have it clear, you are a spammer.

The only thing you have done to advance the dialog is spam this board.

Let's make clear your claims:

1) You are Not a TATF owner.
2) You have to threat TATF with a Attorney General intervention
3) You have direct constant writing communication with Steve Brunner
4) You continue to flip-flop your position about TATF, once you were suing TATF now you are promoting TATF

For some reason you are relentless about spamming here with TATF alleged deeds.

What do you know about farm wood pricing? let's talk about it.
Specially timber pricing planted and sold by TATF!

I suggest you skip the comments of this fellow, who is no owner of TATF trees.
He just happens to avoid the real insulting issues generated by TATF.
Moreover, one has to wonder why a claimed no owner who had to use legal shenanigans with TATF in teh past and now finds so amusing to troll here.
Duped, if you have nothing to say about timber investing I suggest you stop spamming.

Duped, your magnanimous idiocies
are funny......
Still....where is my money!
it is years overdue!
To me TATF is still scam.
Whe I see money then we can a different conversation, for now TATF is proven to be a scam.

Belmontx thanks for pointing up the use of the nicknames in the other forum by king dupe.
The funny thing is, he used a CC of his spew here, thus the postings are the same.
Like doing that is going to change anything !!!!
Clearly, this is not Steve, it is his partner, see my posting in the subject,and why I think is he.
Obviously appears as if he/she/it is not far from been paid by TATF to spread lies.

dupe, you are so full of it, that it is funny......

I suggest you change your name to:
dupedthesofullofit

REMEMBER you say you are not an owner.......so what the hell do you know about been an owner!!!!!!

Obviously, changing your name will not ameliorate what you said in the past, you are still incongruent in your statements.
Nothing makes sense what you post. One period of your persona is all about getting out of TATF, the other is about telling others to get into TATF. I am starting to worry about you.
I have thousands of trees bought from TATF for sale ...how many you want? So you can experience first hand what it is to be a an owner with TAFT.
I can assure you it won't take you long to realize that TATF has scam you.

As you said: you are not tree owner. Then, what are your intentions to make others to suffer what WE the real owners are suffering.