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Dan Peña

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Dan Peña
Dan Peña at Guthrie Castle
Born
Daniel Steven Peña[1]

(1945-08-10) August 10, 1945 (age 79)
Jacksonville, Florida, U.S.
EducationSan Fernando Valley State College (now CSUN) (BS)
OccupationBusinessman
Websitedanpena.co.uk

Daniel Steven Peña Sr. (born August 10, 1945) is an American businessman.[2]

Early life

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Peña is Mexican American and was raised in East Los Angeles, California.[3][unreliable source?][2] In 1971, he graduated from San Fernando Valley State College School of Business Administration and Economics[4] with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration.[2]

Peña's mother was from Mexico and is from both Austrian and Spanish descent. His family moved to Encino when he was 10 years old.[5] His father, who was from New Mexico, was one of the first Mexican American detectives in the Los Angeles Police Department and later worked in a secret CIA unit where he oversaw an investigation into the death of Robert F. Kennedy.[5]

Career

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Peña began his career as a financial analyst on Wall Street.[6] He went on to become president of Great Western Resources, Inc., a Houston-based oil company listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1984.[5] In a move backed by shareholders, Peña was ousted as president of the company in 1992 and subsequently awarded $3.3 million by an American jury, after suing the company over his dismissal.[7][8]

In 1984, Peña bought Guthrie Castle in Angus, Scotland, where he lives and from which he has operated several businesses.[9][10]

In 2017, the castle and estate manager employed by Peña at Guthrie Castle was found to have committed fraud by double or triple booking wedding facilities and paying the higher charges into their own account.[11] Peña said he forgave the employee and covered the £130,000 stolen from clients.[12]

Peña refers to himself as the "trillion-dollar man."[13] He works as a motivational speaker and is known for his brash persona.[5]

Politics

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Peña ran as an independent candidate in the 2024 UK general election in the Angus and Perthshire Glens constituency, running under the slogan, "Make Angus Great Again".[13] He polled just 733 votes (1.5 percent) of the votes cast,[14] coming sixth out of six candidates. The seat was won by the Scottish National Party candidate.

References

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  1. ^ "Daniel Steven Pena - Personal Appointments". Companies House. Retrieved 2017-04-12.
  2. ^ a b c Martinez, Al (August 3, 1983). "The Latino wealthy — a new breed". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  3. ^ Peña, Dan (5 February 1997). "American guru is man in a million - and one to follow". Aberdeen Press & Journal (Interview). Interviewed by David Gault.
  4. ^ Peña, Dan (May 29, 1991). Dan Pena's Commencement Speech (Speech). California State University, Northridge. Archived from the original on 2021-12-20. Retrieved April 18, 2018 – via YouTube.[self-published source]
  5. ^ a b c d "How a scrappy Chicano from L.A. came to own a Scottish castle". Los Angeles Times. 2021-04-19. Archived from the original on 2023-11-02. Retrieved 2023-11-02.
  6. ^ Levi, Jim (2 June 1985). "Pena set to pay out". The Observer. p. 26. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  7. ^ Sweeney, John (31 October 1993). "Fraud shadow over Lilley firm". The Observer. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  8. ^ "GWR Settles With Pena". The Guardian. 1 December 1993. p. 21. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  9. ^ "U.S. oilman is new owner of Guthrie Castle". Aberdeen Press & Journal. 23 October 1984.
  10. ^ "Rescued castle to open its doors". The Scotsman (Press release). 4 August 2003.
  11. ^ "EXCLUSIVE: Fraud hit Guthrie Castle to stop holding weddings later this year". The Courier. 4 May 2017. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
  12. ^ "Castle owner forgives £130,000 wedding fraudster". BBC News. 14 September 2017. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
  13. ^ a b Horne, Marc (June 15, 2024). "Texan tycoon called locals illiterates — now he wants to be their MP". www.thetimes.com.
  14. ^ "Election 2024 > Angus and Perthshire Glens results". BBC News. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
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