Moline v. Brimberry (In Re Stix & Co.)

27 B.R. 252, 1983 Bankr. LEXIS 7032
CourtUnited States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. Missouri
DecidedJanuary 14, 1983
Docket16-41942
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 27 B.R. 252 (Moline v. Brimberry (In Re Stix & Co.)) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Bankruptcy Court, E.D. Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Moline v. Brimberry (In Re Stix & Co.), 27 B.R. 252, 1983 Bankr. LEXIS 7032 (Mo. 1983).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM OPINION

ROBERT E. BRAUER, Bankruptcy Judge.

By a Complaint filed on February 23, 1982, Harry 0. Moline, Trustee (Moline), seeks an order (1) compelling Defendant Brimberry (Brimberry) to account for all funds allegedly diverted since 1975 from Stix & Co., Inc., Debtor (Stix), and to account for the disposition of those funds; (2) impressing a trust upon bank accounts and real estate, held by Brimberry, which were established or purchased with funds and/or securities allegedly wrongfully diverted from Stix; and (3) directing Brim-berry to turn over to him (Moline) all “assets in his custody or control belonging to Stix or which were purchased with funds diverted from Stix”. By an Amendment to the Complaint, filed October 4, 1982, 1 Mo-line seeks, also, an award of money damages, together with “such other and further relief that may be just and appropriate”. 2

In the Complaint, as amended, Moline alleges that Brimberry (an officer, director and shareholder of Stix, and who served as chief operations officer and who supervised the operations function of Stix) and others developed and implemented a scheme pursuant to which he (Brimberry) wrongfully diverted cash and/or securities, totalling approximately $14,000,000, from Stix, through the establishment of controlled margin accounts which were posted to reflect fictitious security positions from which funds were wrongfully withdrawn for the benefit of Brimberry and others; that Brimberry, through his capacity as Chief Operations Officer and director, caused Stix’ records to be falsified to conceal the scheme and facilitate the wrongful withdrawals; that the fictitious securities positions reflected by the controlled margin accounts reflected securities having a market value of $36,238,-625, which securities have not been located; that the cash and securities wrongfully withdrawn and diverted from Stix, by Brimberry, were used by him to purchase real estate, and personal property, and bank accounts, now in his name and/or under his control; that such property is property of the estate within the meaning 11 U.S.C. 541, subject to turn over order under 11 U.S.C. 542.

On August 13, 1982, a consent order was entered by this Court (upon Moline’s Motion For Injunction), enjoining Brimberry and those in concert with him from disposing of any real property in which he, or his wife, or his minor children, have any legal or beneficial interest, until all claims asserted in this Cause are finally determined. On the same day, Brimberry filed a Report with this Court, by which he agreed that he and/or his wife would convey to Moline various parcels of real estate, and a Jet Boat. 3 Specifically excepted from the *254 agreement, contained in the Report, is certain real estate, not therein identified by location, as to which the Trustee was laying claim, the claim being resisted by Brimber-ry. The real estate is known as 6100 Huntress Drive, Paradise Valley, Arizona, held in trust by Stone, Menkes and Carrion, Ronald Stone, Trustee, under a revocable Trust Agreement dated April 22, 1980, wherein Brimberry, using an alias or pseudonym, Tom Miller, is the Trustor.

The only issues remaining in the case, following the filing of the Report, are (1) whether Moline is entitled, under the proof, to a judgment against Brimberry, and (2) whether a trust, in favor of Moline, is to be impressed upon the Paradise Valley real estate, and that real estate ordered to be transferred to Moline as property of this estate.

The Matters in issue were submitted, by Stipulation filed September 22, 1982, upon the deposition of one Ronald Stone, and upon certain portions of a transcript of testimony given by Brimberry on November 10, 1981, in the St. Louis, MO FBI Offices to certain officers of various Federal agencies.

INDEBTEDNESS

The Trustee’s evidence consists of Debt- or’s records (Exhibits 1 through 11), identified by Brimberry in his transcript testimony, as records (Statements of Account) evidencing the security positions, bona fide and fictitious, and short positions, in 10 margin accounts maintained with the Debt- or. Each of these 10 accounts was either controlled absolutely by Brimberry, or was manipulated by him with the consent of the entity in whose name(s) the account was maintained. 4

The records speak as of October 81, 1981. No other evidence was adduced. To the extent that each of the ten accounts includes legitimate security positions, credit for the value of which must be given to establish an indebtedness, the amount of the judgment being recommended takes into account the values ascribed to those legitimate securities positions as of October 31, 1981.

According to my analysis of the records (Statement Of Accounts), Moline is entitled to judgment against Brimberry in and for the sum of $23,477,940.37, 5 and I so recommend that a judgment for that sum be entered.

In computing the amount for which the judgment is being recommended, each Statement of Account has been analyzed. Analysis of the J.A. Miller account, No. 11641081, is herein set forth. Analyses of the remaining nine accounts is attached hereto by Exhibits. 6

*255 The Statement of Account, relating to this account, reflects a debit, or indebtedness, balance to Stix, of $3,895,756.39, secured by securities positions, of which $1,067,842.50 is the total value of legitimate securities positions, 7 in contrast to $5,067,-750.00 as the value of fictitious securities positions. The securities positions, reflected in the account, are:

PHONY (VALUE) LEGIT. (VALUE) 8
20,000 Sh. TOM BROWN 565,000
30,000 Sh. BURTON HAWKS 121,890.00
5,000 Sh. CHAPARRAL RES. INC. 43,750.00
13,100 Sh. CITIES SERVICE 638,625.00
5,000 Sh. COLONIAL COMMERCIAL 3,750.00
30,000 Sh. COMDIALCORP. 170,640.00
2,500 Sh. FIRST MISS. CORP. 35,937.50
36,000 Sh. RAYCHEM CORP. 1,782,000.00
10,000 Sh. SCRIPPS HOWARD 202,500.00
20,000 Sh. SIGMA ALDRICH CORP. 1,185,000.00
10,000 Sh. TANDEM COMPUTERS, INC. 326,250.00
12,000 Sh. TEKTRONIX, INC. 612,000.00
20,000 Sh. VALMONT INDUSTRIES 395,000.00
6,000 Sh. VICTORIA STATION, INC. 53,250.00
17,750 Sh. HOLIDAY INNS CONV. N/A

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Bluebook (online)
27 B.R. 252, 1983 Bankr. LEXIS 7032, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/moline-v-brimberry-in-re-stix-co-moeb-1983.