About Sage Investigations

Edmond J. Martin

Principal, Chief Investigator

Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE), Texas Board Certified Investigator (TBCI)

EdMartin@SageInvestigations.com

Ed grew up in New Orleans and earned a degree in accounting from Southeastern Louisiana College in 1968. After a year with a New Orleans CPA firm, he joined the Intelligence Division of the IRS. He trained in federal law enforcement in Washington, D.C., from August 1969 to February 1970, then returned to New Orleans and served on a DOJ Strike Force team that investigated District Attorney Jim Garrison and the New Orleans Police Department for public bribery by the local pinball industry.

In 1975 he moved to Austin. After reaching senior agent status he became a lead agent in income tax evasion and fraud investigations. He resigned from the U.S. Treasury Department in 1984 and worked as a Supervising Examiner for the Texas State Securities Board in Austin, on matters including Ponzi schemes (John Colgin, 1985), oil and gas fraud, and securities fraud.

In 1991 he returned to IRS Criminal Investigation as a Special Agent. Cases from this period include Ralph Kirkley, Inc. (1996), the advanced-fee scheme of William Fourie (1996–1998), and the Ponzi schemes of Russell Erxleben (1998–1999) and Brian Stearns (1999–2000). He was also the lead agent, and described as instrumental, in resolving the disappearance of Madalyn Murray O'Hair and her two adult children (1997–2000). After one trial in that matter, the Austin Chronicle stated: "If not for the methodical investigation of Special Agent Ed Martin and the FBI they (Gary Karr and David Waters) would have gotten away with murder."

After nearly 26 years with the IRS, he retired in October 2001. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Austin presented an award for "Dedication to the Cause of Law Enforcement," and he was nominated for the FBI's Director's Award. In 2002 he received the Law Enforcement Circle of Excellence Award from the Central Texas 100 Club and the "Service Above Self Award" from the Austin Rotary Clubs. He has been interviewed or featured in connection with the O'Hair investigation on American Justice, A&E, TruTV, Discovery, City Confidential, Vanished, BBC, the documentary Good Riddance, Murder by the Book, and in books by Ted Dracos and Ann Seaman.

He launched Sage Investigations, LLC after retirement. He joined the Texas Association of Licensed Investigators (TALI) in 2002, received a Meritorious Service Award for Investigative Excellence in 2006, and earned the TBCI designation in 2007. In August 2015 TALI awarded him the Hudgins-Sallee Award. He served as TALI Treasurer for five years, served on the Board of Directors, and was elected TALI President in August 2018 for a term through August 2021. In 2006 he founded Cynic, Inc. and launched DIO, proprietary software for complex fraud investigations.

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Jason Slick

Financial Investigator, Computer Scientist and Data Analyst

Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE)

jason.slick@sageinvestigations.com

Jason grew up in Alvin, Texas, and earned a degree in mathematics and computer science from Texas State University in 1998. His early career was as a software engineer. At Sage he works on complicated cases and large-value asset tracing, and on databases, large data sets, cryptocurrency, custom point-of-sale systems, and other digital data. He developed the algorithms and core of DIO. The software is based on following the money and does not rely on simple accounting tricks.

Daniel Fannin, MBA, CPA, CFE, CAMS

Financial Investigator

CPA, CFE, Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS), Chainalysis (cryptocurrency), Licensed Private Investigator in Texas

daniel.fannin@sageinvestigations.com

Daniel spent over 26 years as a Special Agent with IRS Criminal Investigation, retired in 2021, and joined Sage. He holds an MBA from the University of Texas. His IRS-CI casework included income tax evasion (domestic and international), payroll tax fraud, money laundering, Bank Secrecy Act violations, investment fraud, bank fraud, mail fraud, bankruptcy fraud, CARES Act loan fraud, illegal gaming, human trafficking, and narcotics trafficking, across industries including banking, technology, oil and gas, restaurants and bars, construction, trucking, real estate, and telemarketing. He has worked with the U.S. Attorney's Office, FBI, HSI, DEA, the U.S. Secret Service, and state and local agencies, and has testified in grand juries and courts. Since retiring he has been a Lecturer at the University of Texas at Austin, McCombs School of Business, teaching ACC 355 and ACC 380K.11 (Introduction to Taxation and Fundamentals of Financial Accounting).

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Michael J. Fernald, CPA, CFE, PI

Financial Investigator

CPA, CFE, Texas Private Investigator

MichaelFernald@SageInvestigations.com

Michael is a United States Army veteran and a retired IRS-CI Special Agent with more than 30 years of federal government experience. His investigations included criminal tax violations, investment fraud, Ponzi schemes, embezzlement, bank fraud, wire fraud, and international money laundering, in matters involving oil and gas wells, real estate, fine art, German government bonds, quarter horses, factoring of accounts receivable, securities, and joint ventures. He was a member of the Houston Field Office Money Laundering Task Force, targeting third-party money laundering connected to Mexican drug-trafficking organizations, transnational criminal organizations, and terrorist groups, and worked with the FBI, DEA, and U.S. Attorney's Offices. He has been qualified and has testified as a financial crimes and money laundering expert in federal trials, detention and sentencing hearings, and before grand juries. Since retirement he has been engaged as a financial expert in civil matters including construction fraud, business disputes, embezzlement, and facilitating whistleblower claims to federal law enforcement.

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Toni Lusk, MBA, CFE

Financial Investigator

CFE

Toni has 20-plus years of experience in fraud, forensic investigations, and managerial accounting, including litigation consulting and support. Her industry experience includes hospitality, consumer packaged goods, real estate, oil and gas, engineering services, retail, technology, construction, medical device, and advertising. She holds a BA from Baylor University and an MBA in Accounting from St. Edwards University in Austin, and is a Certified Fraud Examiner. Her work includes fraud and forensic accounting investigation, litigation consulting and support, financial reporting, cash-flow forecasting and management, internal audit, and budgeting and process improvement.

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Kenton Stephens

Director of Surveillance and Undercover

kenton.stephens@sageinvestigations.com

Kenton became a Licensed Private Investigator in Texas in 2009. His work includes surveillance, undercover operations, background checks, and case research, including multi-jurisdictional records searches. He has provided witness testimony in multiple court trials, holds a B.S. in Criminal Justice from Texas State University (1998), and has logged over 950 hours of surveillance work. He has more than 10 years of experience investigating corporate business structures. In 2011 he established a relationship with Sage. He has lectured to the Austin chapter of TALI on effective use of the internet to jump-start an investigation.