I would rather put my money with a guy who has proven to be honest with his investors. Not one who has lived well while his investors were wiped out because he lied about what he would do for them.. But to each his own.
you need to check filings of his previous companies - first two years they grew rapidly (take 10QSB as a source)... - many companies failed 'cause of market botched @ that time and this wasn’t the total fault of the CEO... He was looking for a new opportunity for 5 years - this is something!