Lawyers for Trinity Broadcasting Center of Santa Ana, more commonly known as TBN, say disgruntled family members are seeking hush money from the Christian broadcasting giant by talking to the press about their court cases against the network.
A court filing by TBN attorney Douglas L. Mahaffey claims that Michael and Brittany Koper (the latter being the granddaughter of TBN founders Paul and Jan Crouch, and the company's former chief financial officer), who have sued the network over a host of allegations that include financial mismanagement and harassment, have failed to respond in a timely manner to TBN's demand for arbitration.
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According to a Christian Post report, “The reasons for the Kopers not participating have been strategic,” the petition says, “Since their termination, the Kopers have pursued 'hush money' by a media campaign to undermine the mission and reputation of TCCSA by making baseless allegations against TCCSA's principals.
“Taking advantage of their access to financial andemployment files, the Kopers absconded with large quantities of TCCSA corporate records, and now are systematically disclosing to the news media and other information-based organizations confidential information and trade secrets.”
It's not the only court headache for the Crouches. Carra Crouch, the 19-year-old younger sister of Brittany Koper, has filed a lawsuit alleging that TBN covered up her 2006 at the hands of a former employee.
And the network alleges that the Kopers pilfered assets during their employment.
Trinity says the Kopers breached the terms of an arbitration agreement during their employment, and disputes were to be settled outside of court.
