Torrance Financial Firm Chief Agrees to Pay for Bad Checks

The president of a Torrance investment firm that has filed for bankruptcy and is the object of federal and state fraud investigations pleaded no contest Wednesday to one count of writing a bad check to an investor.

Under terms of a plea agreement, Morris D. English Jr. agreed to pay $80,000 to one victim and $1,254 to another in return for the dismissal of one count of grand theft and six other misdemeanor counts of intentionally writing bad checks.

South Bay Municipal Court Judge Josh Fredricks sentenced English, 50, to one year of unsupervised probation. The probation is to end once English has completed payments to the two victims.

Neither English nor his attorney could be reached for comment.

English is president of the Wellington Group, which is under investigation by the state Department of Corporations, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the U.S. attorney’s office and the FBI for alleged securities fraud. Investigators examining the company say it may owe up to $50 million in investments to as many as 1,500 people from San Jose to San Diego.

A small group of Wellington investors, as well as a borrower who said he was cheated during a series of Wellington loans, quietly celebrated English’s plea outside court Wednesday. They praised Torrance city prosecutor Jesse Rodriguez for the quick filing of charges in the case.

“This is the first time (English) has been convicted of anything,” Wellington investor Lee Roozen said. “We are very happy that . . . this could possibly create a precedent for other cases down the line.”

All of the charges involved Wellington investors Elvin Field, to whom English wrote $80,000 in worthless checks, and Elva Derryberry, to whom English wrote two rubber checks totaling $1,241.

As part of the plea agreement, English on Wednesday gave Field a certified cashier’s check for $25,000. He must repay the remaining $55,000 to Field no later than July 17, 1992, the court ruled.

The plea bargain calls for Derryberry to receive her $1,241 no later than next Sept. 17.

Field, 64, spoke outside the courtroom about how happy he was with the outcome of the case. “I never thought I’d see any of the money again,” he said.

Field, a retired movie cameraman, said the money represents a significant portion of his retirement nest egg. Although English can be ordered back to court if he fails to repay the money still owed, Field said he would not be surprised if he does not receive the final payments.