Mile High Monday — the Fifth Installment: Introducing the Key Players
The case against Mile High Capital Group (MHCG) involves a colorful cast of characters, each of whom has an intriguing background of his own. In this installment of Mile High Monday, we introduce you to the key players, including the founder and former CEO of MHCG, Fredric “Rick” Dryer.

FREDRIC “RICK” DRYER
Fredric “Rick” Dryer is the creator of and speaker on the popular Right Place Right Time Real Estate Investment Strategies™ seminars, which have drawn tens of thousands of eager real estate investors to venues from Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco to Boston, Philadelphia, and Washington DC. Rick also co-hosted a popular online talk show called Real Estate Wealth: Myths, Facts & Strategies with Gary Eldred, in which Gary and Rick offer listeners advice on how to successfully invest in real estate.
Throughout his 30-year career, Dryer has been involved in several different areas of real estate investing, including government lease-backs, subdivision development, land development, apartment development, and condo conversions. In recent years, he began to focus his interests on long-term investments, specifically the purchase of individual homes (attached and detached) in order to rent them out to establish cash flow while the properties appreciated. Dryer specialized in identifying high-growth areas and developing rental properties on the outer boundaries of these areas where they would be in high demand.
In 2000, Dryer launched MHCG to develop his own rental properties. He soon realized, through his Right Place Right Time seminars, that a market existed for the types of properties he was developing: a market that consisted of investors who wanted to purchase rental properties for current cash flow and the opportunity to cash in on long-term appreciation. By 2002, MHCG started developing properties specifically for the purpose of selling these properties to investors.
According to Dryer, in 2004, he realized that he needed assistance in running MHCG and that his true passions were centered in his Right Place Right Time Seminars and in working directly with investors. To achieve his goals, he decided to bring someone else on board to manage land acquisitions and property development.
Over the past 20-plus years, Dryer has had more than his fair share of run-ins with the law. In 1983, he pleaded no contest to criminal securities law violations in Wisconsin. According to court records, in one case, Dryer formed a limited partnership to buy a plot of land. He then misrepresented the deal to his partners and diverted a substantial amount of the money invested to his own use. He was sentenced in January, 1984 to four years’ probation on one count of fraud and four years probation (two concurrent two-year probationary periods) on two counts of selling non-exempt securities.
Dryer claims that he was the victim of an over-ambitious prosecutor in Wisconsin by the name of Phil Feigin, who happens to resurface in Colorado years later to further haunt Dryer (see below).
Shortly after pleading no contest to security violations in Wisconsin but prior to his sentencing, Dryer moved to Colorado. Within four years (in 1987), he was in legal trouble again. This time, he pleaded no contest to ten counts of securities fraud in Boulder County in connection with the sale of promissory notes. He was sentenced to eight years’ probation and ordered to pay restitution of $89,100.
From 1987 until 2000, Dryer appears to have been free and clear of legal troubles. In 2000, he launched MHCG, and by 2005, he was back in trouble as investors began filing complaints against his company. On August 23, 2006, the legal problems became official when a 2006 Denver County Statutory Grand Jury handed down its indictment of Fredric R. Dryer, Richard J. Darrow, and Jeffrey Dietz on 58 counts, including racketeering, conspiracy to commit securities fraud, securities fraud, conspiracy to commit theft, and theft. Since this time, nine more counts have been added for a total of 67.
Dryer has pleaded not guilty on all counts.
RICHARD J. DARROW
Richard J. Darrow managed MHCG’s sister company RPS (Replacement Property Solutions, Inc.). RPS acted as a “qualified intermediary” for tax-deferred 1031 Exchanges. With a 1031 exchange, you can exchange one investment property for another without having to pay taxes on the capital gains from selling the first property, assuming the properties are of “like kind.” Think of it as a rollover for real estate investments. Although RPS was a separate company, distinct from MHCG, it handled many of the 1031 exchanges for clients who wanted to exchange their current properties for MHCG investment properties.
Darrow has a felony conviction under his belt. In 1999, he pled guilty to fraud and motor vehicle theft, striking a plea bargain in which he agreed to share his knowledge of identity theft with law enforcement. Darrow also shared his knowledge of identity theft with a national audience on a CBS News special called “The Identity Thief Preys on Unsuspecting Victims,” in which Darrow is referred to as an “identity thief extraordinaire.”
Darrow has pleaded not guilty on all counts related to the indictment.
ANDREW MCFAUL
In January of 2005, Andrew McFaul took on the role of COO (chief operating officer) of MHCG. This was only about a year after McFaul had his run-in with the law. In 2002, McFaul was building a home in the Crested Butte area in Gunnison County, Colorado. According to court records, he became upset with the contractor, High Mountain Concepts, and related subcontractors. Out of spite, he took various tools and other implements from the contractor and subcontractors without their knowledge.
Unbeknownst to the contractor and subcontractor, McFaul had a secret room built into his house, a panic room of sorts, in which he hid the tools and other implements he had taken. When law enforcement officers searched the premises, they discovered not only the stolen property, but also two “short shotguns.” This resulted in an additional charge of possession of illegal weapons. McFaul’s attorney negotiated a plea agreement in which McFaul was required to pay restitution to the victims of the theft in the amount of $36,393.00 and perform 192 hours of public service.
According to his petition to plead guilty, McFaul states that he completed school through the 12th grade plus two years of college. Given his criminal record and somewhat limited education, one may wonder what qualifications Dryer thought McFaul had to justify hiring McFaul, placing him in the position of COO, and later allegedly selling the company to him. Was McFaul really qualified? Did Dryer simply make a poor business decision? Or was Dryer intentionally placing McFaul in a position in which he could make McFaul the “fall guy?” What did Dryer know about McFaul or what didn’t he know about him that may have prevented the losses incurred by trusting investors?
JEFFREY DIETZ
Jeffrey Dietz is more than just the person who took over as CEO and Executive Vice President of MHCG after Dryer resigned as CEO in 2005. Dietz is also McFaul’s brother-in-law.
According to McFaul and Dietz, Dryer was the sole person responsible for the fraud [the fraud, that is, that is alleged to have occurred at MHCG]–Dryer handed responsibility over to the two men just as the problems started becoming apparent in order to set them up as the fall guys. According to Dryer, MHCG was in fine shape until McFaul and Dietz took over–through their mismanagement, duplexes failed to be built and delivered to investors as promised. Dryer’s job at this time was primarily devoted to promotion and sales. McFaul and Dietz were responsible for making sure the product was delivered.
Dietz has struck a plea bargain with the Denver district attorney in exchange for cooperating with authorities in the case against Dryer.
PHIL FEIGIN
Phil Feigin is currently Andrew McFaul’s attorney. If the name sounds familiar, it should. This is the same Phil Feigin who prosecuted Rick Dryer in Wisconsin. When MHCG started having legal problems, McFaul did a little research and found that Feigin had moved from Wisconsin to Colorado. McFaul then placed Feigin on retainer to represent him in the case.
NICK SABARDIN
Nick Sabardin is the president of Convergent Acquisitions & Development, Inc., a Charlotte, North Carolina-based company that develops and sells rental properties to real estate investors (much like MHCG). Sabardin graduated from the prestigious Sorbonne University in Paris, France, before spending several years as a business consultant to some of France’s largest corporations. He completed his education by earning an MBA here in the United States, with an emphasis on technology and marketing. He flew as an Airline Transport Pilot under the US Airways colors for five years after graduation, and eventually fell in love with the Charlotte area. He is an experienced real estate investor.
Dryer currently serves as a consultant for Convergent and other companies in North Carolina. Sabardin is one of Dryer’s most avid advocates. He believes that the evidence will show that Dryer is completely innocent and that McFaul and Dietz ran MHCG into the ground. Following Dryer’s investment strategies, Sabardin is committed to building a company that achieves what MHCG failed to achieve; that is, develop and manage rental properties for investors that provide current cash flow along with opportunities for future investment returns as the properties appreciate.








