By Patrick Crowley and James McNair
The Cincinnati Enquirer

RICHWOOD - Thomas Jordan, a central figure in the federal investigation of the Erpenbeck Co., was found dead Wednesday in his condominium at Triple Crown Country Club in Boone County.

Mr. Jordan, 55, was discovered by his son shortly before 4 p.m., Boone County Coroner Kenneth Trimbach said Thursday. He was pronounced dead at 4:18 p.m.

The cause of death was not immediately determined, but it appeared Mr. Jordan apparently died of a heart attack, Mr. Trimbach said. The portly, gregarious Erpenbeck vice president was known to be a heavy smoker.

An autopsy was ordered to be performed at St. Luke Hospital East in Fort Thomas.

Mr. Jordan lived in a condo next to one of the greens.

A former banker, Mr. Jordan was president of Provident Bank's Northern Kentucky unit from 1991 to 1995. Several years later, he joined Erpenbeck as it became Greater Cincinnati's third-largest homebuilder. He was vice president of administration and coordinated transactions with the company's many lending institutions.

Erpenbeck shut its doors in April after the FBI began investigating the company for bank fraud. FBI agents and officials at Peoples Bank of Northern Kentucky said Erpenbeck took tens of millions of dollars from home-sale transactions instead of paying off construction loans and subcontractor debts. Hundreds of home buyers were left with double mortgages.

Mr. Jordan was on the management team that took over operations of the company after co-founder and president Bill Erpenbeck resigned in March.

His role as one of Erpenbeck's top financial operatives drew the attention of both the FBI and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., sources said. He was represented by Cincinnati criminal lawyer Hal Arenstein, but had never commented publicly on the investigation or his work at Erpenbeck.

E-mail pcrowley@enquirer and jmcnair@enquirer.com.