Asheville Airbnb owner may face $3.5M penalty for fraud; prosecutors ask for money penalty

Joel Burgess, Asheville Citizen Times
·2 min read
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ASHEVILLE - A well-known short-term vacation rental owner should pay a $3.5 million penalty for defrauding banks and other financial institutions, federal prosecutors say.

U.S. attorney Dena King in a July 19 motion for a money judgment said the crimes committed by Asheville area vacation rental owner Shawn Johnson amount to "precisely the type of case in which punishment in the form of a financial penalty is imperative."

King is arguing for Chief Judge Martin Reidinger to impose the penalty at an Aug. 18 sentencing hearing at U.S. District Court in Asheville.

Johnson's attorney Thomas Amburgey declined to comment on July 21. The defense is expected to provide its own arguments in a written motion by July 26.

Prosecutors also declined to comment.

Johnson, who gained fame as a hard-working, good-hearted handyman and entrepreneur later became known for business deals in which those involved said he bilked them out of money and houses.

Shawn Johnson pressure washes a house in West Asheville. Johnson became almost an urban legend among the 15,000 members of the West Asheville Exchange Facebook group. He offered handyman work as Shawn of All Trades.
Shawn Johnson pressure washes a house in West Asheville. Johnson became almost an urban legend among the 15,000 members of the West Asheville Exchange Facebook group. He offered handyman work as Shawn of All Trades.

In 2019, he had his real estate license revoked. On March 25, Johnson pleaded guilty in federal court to taking out 16 fraudulent loans worth $3.5 million. Loan rules said the money was to be used for primary residences and homes for veterans. Instead, Johnson turned the houses he bought into short-term rentals, often called "Airbnbs" after the popular online rental platform. It was Johnson's second federal conviction after being found guilty in 2010 of counterfeiting.

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In the July 19 motion, King said the properties purchased with the loans "have been rendered essentially out of reach by additional loans and refinancing, foreclosure actions, bankruptcy actions and straw owners created and/or recruited by the defendant."

She said the government attempted to reach a settlement with Johnson for an "alternative financial penalty" or one that used properties not purchased with the loans, but he did not agree.

The law allows for substitute properties to be used to pay a money judgment, King said, calling the proposed $3.5 million a "conservative calculation" of how much was involved in the fraud.

Johnson is familiar with the courts, according to a review by the Citizen Times that showed dozens of legal actions that he took out or of which he was the subject. Those entangled in the legal fights say he used them to bully and intimidate people whose property he sought to acquire.

Johnson has said, without giving evidence, that several of the people involved in the legal actions were "implicated" in the federal fraud and that some were once "dear friends" and that he missed them.

Money Judgement by Joel Burgess on Scribd

Joel Burgess has lived in WNC for more than 20 years, covering politics, government and other news. He's written award-winning stories on topics ranging from gerrymandering to police use of force. Got a tip? Contact Burgess at jburgess@citizentimes.com, 828-713-1095 or on Twitter @AVLreporter. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times. 

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville Airbnb owner may face $3.5M penalty; pleaded guilty to fraud