The quick foxes are amok in the chicken coop — or similar such thoughts — must be in the minds of the Rothstein victims who actually read the terms of the tainted Rothstein - Gibraltar Bank bankruptcy "settlement."
Rothstein victims have so far recovered 1/4 billion dollars from TD Bank — 67 million from a recent jury award and from a reported settlement of 170 million. There is more to come.
Recovery from Gibraltar Bank could easily be 1/2 billion dollars ... without the tainted bankruptcy "settlement," because the Rothstein victims' case against Gibraltar Bank is stronger than the case against TD Bank (see below).
Yet, the bankruptcy "settlement" only costs Gibraltar a few million dollars (see previous post) and bars Rothstein victims from any greater recovery from Gibraltar!
The "settlement" enriches the head honchos of local bankruptcy power house Berger Singerman, including Paul Singerman, by protecting their many millions invested in Gibraltar as partners (co-shareholders) with Scott Rothstein. Berger Singerman, as lead attorneys for the bankruptcy estate, for all practical purposes control the bankruptcy estate. Furthermore, public reports about the "settlement" have ignored the similar protection given to the unidentified 50.
Who or what is the 50? It isn't a movie. They are the unidentified 50 Florida "movers and shakers" who partnered with Berger Singerman honchos and Scott Rothstein to buy control of Gibraltar. Entry into that exalted inner circle implied very close personal and/or business relationships with Berger Singerman honchos and Rothstein because the investment was a private placement. The investment was made with great secrecy and a deliberate concealment of the identities of the 50. The reasons for concealing the identities of the 50 are now very clear.
The SunSentinal reported Rothstein testified: "We were involved in public corruption with law enforcement. We were involved in activities with mob-related individuals. We were involved in activities involving the physical threats of other individuals. We were involved in the public corruption side of purchasing of political positions. We were involved in the manipulation of the judiciary."
Surprisingly, reporters have made no attempt to identify the 50 ... a list that is a "brass ring" goal for investigative reporting. The list will reveals who Rothstein may have been referring to in his explosive testimony. Floridians have a right to know which officials and/or prominent individuals were in bed with Rothstein.
Moreover, as things now stand, the unidentified 50 — which likely includes public officials — owe Paul Singerman, and the other unidentified Berger Singerman honcho Gibraltar owners, a great debt (presumably to be later paid back) for protecting their Gibraltar investments and their identities.
The case against Gibraltar is stronger than the case against TD Bank:
The essence of the recently won jury case against TD Bank was straightforward. A short summary of the case was that TD Bank knew of the Scott Rothstein fraud because of the fraud's size, its longevity and normal banking controls raised many red flags that TD Bank should have reacted to; all of the signs were there for TD Bank to see a massive fraud was occurring; it is impossible to believe that TD Bank official didn't know of the fraud but allowed it to continue because it was profitable to do so. See Business Week article TD Bank Aided Rothstein Fraud, Investors’ Lawyer Tells Jury
The case against Gibraltar is stronger than that against TD Bank because Berger Singerman honchos and Paul Singerman were multi million dollar investors in Gibraltar. The victims, at trial, would argue that it is impossible for Gibraltar management and owners to not have been aware of Rothstein's schemes — more so than TD Bank — because Berger Singerman is a local bankruptcy power house firm that claims to have extensive experience in uncovering complex financial frauds. They would argue that it is impossible to believe Berger Singerman, with their extensive "expertise" in ferreting out complex financial fraud, did not see the warning signs of the massive Rothstein fraud when they conducted due diligence for their multi million dollar Gibraltar investments. In addition, the government has cited Gibraltar Bank for extensive money laundering violations. These arguments would carry great weight with a jury and it is not unreasonable to project awards of upwards of 1/2 billion dollars against Gibraltar in light of the TD Bank verdict and settlement.
See the next post for the undisclosed and extraordinary hidden "Trojan horses" that are contained in the tainted bankruptcy Rothstein - Gibraltar settlement. Those Trojan horses further benefit and protect Berger Singerman honchos ... at the further great expense of the Rothstein victims.
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