| Net Worth | $400,000 |
|---|---|
| Full Name | David Mordechai Packouz |
| Date of Birth/Age | February 16, 1982 (age 37) |
| Source of wealth | Former arms dealer, inventor, and entrepreneur |
| Country of origin | U.S. |
| State/City of origin | St. Louis, Missouri |
| Last Updated | 2019 |
Net Worth
Estimates of David Packouz’s net worth range from $400,000 to over a million.
At one time, he amassed a small fortune as an arms dealer, but after his arrest and exposure, it’s not clear where that money went.
He definitely has a gift for making money, and if his new business is even half as profitable as his old one, he’ll be set for life.
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How Did David Packouz Make His Money?
Packouz is a former arms dealer. His exploits in that field made him the subject of numerous magazine articles and a movie.
Today, he is a musician, an inventor, and an entrepreneur. He sells his invention, a guitar pedal drum machine called the Beat Buddy, through his Singular Sound company.
Packouz also owns an educational nonprofit organization called Guitars Over Guns.
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Arms Business
In 2005, Packouz and his business partner Efraim Diveroli decided to go into the arms-trading business. At the time, the field was controlled by a small, tightly-knit group of businessmen.
It was also a business that required the ability to generate high-level contacts in the U.S. government and with foreign governments.
Packouz and Diveroli didn’t let any of that stop them. They entered the business with only a few connections, very little money and no experience.
Packouz was only 23 and working as a massage therapist. His partner Diveroli was only 19. Within a few years, they were making millions of dollars in this high-dollar, high-risk venture.
Adventures in Gun Dealing
Their exploits made them famous. Packouz and Diveroli were featured in a 2016 Rolling Stone article titled, “The Stoner Arms Dealers: How Two American Kids Became Big-Time Weapons Traders.” They were also the subject of the book Arms and the Dudes by Guy Lawson.
Their story was the basis of the 2016 feature film War Dogs starring Miles Teller and Jonah Hill. Packouz had a small role in the film. He played a singer who entertains residents at a retirement community.
Early Life
Packouz was born in St. Louis to Kalman and Shoshana Packouz. His father was a rabbi who created one of the world’s first Jewish dating services. David was one of nine children.
Packouz moved to Miami Beach as a young man and trained as a massage therapist. That’s what he was doing in 2005 when his friend Diveroli approached him with a new business venture.
Diveroli had inherited his father’s munitions company, AEY Inc. Diveroli offered Packouz a job with the company and suggested that they get into large-scale arms trading.
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Success Came Quickly
Their new business took off like a rocket. Shortly after forming the company, they got their first order.
It was a U.S. government contract to deliver 50,000 gallons of propane to an Air Force base in Wyoming. They made an $8000 profit on this first deal.
That may not seem huge, but it was only the beginning. Within months, they had lined up over 100 contracts totaling aver $100 million to supply ammunition and weapons to the U.S. government.
In 2006, they signed a $300 million contract to deliver 100 million rounds of AK-47 ammunition, 100 million rounds of sniper rifle ammunition and hundreds of aviation rockets to the army of Afghanistan. They were rolling in the money and there seemed to be no end in sight.
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Arrest and Downfall
Unfortunately, the ammunition that they delivered to Afghanistan had been manufactured in China. This was a violation of the U.S. law that prohibits selling any ammunition or weapons made in China.
The use of Chinese ammunition violated AEY’s contract with the government. During the subsequent investigation, government inspectors determined that Packouz knew where the ammunition came from and had taken steps to cover it up.
In 2008, Packouz and Diveroli were arrested and charged with conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government.
Packouz was found guilty and placed under house arrest for seven months. Diveroli was sentenced to four years in federal prison.
The arrest prompted an investigation by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee of the U.S. Congress.
This investigation uncovered the fact that even before the arrest, the government had canceled several contracts with AEY because of late deliveries, failure to deliver or delivery of unsafe products.
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Current Status
After completing his house arrest, Packouz kept a low profile. He had always had an interest in music, and he released the album MicroCOSM in 2008.
In 2009, he invented the Beat Buddy, a tool that helps musicians play better. He is the CEO of Singular Sound, which sells the Beat Buddy.
In 2016, he formed the organization Guitars Over Guns. The organization provides free musical equipment to schools and teaches music, dance and visual arts to underprivileged and at-risk children.
In an article announcing the launch of the program, Packouz said, “We are incredibly proud that our invention will impact the lives of young people by making them better musicians and inspiring them to continue pursuing their musical passion.”
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Favorite Quotes From David Packouz
“I try not to do anything that’s remotely risky, especially now that I’m a family man and I have a child. I’m just trying to keep my nose clean, so to speak, to keep looking at the moment. You have to remember that no matter how bad things seem, you can always strive for better things down the road.”
