Judge Keeps Former Head of O.C. Firm in Jail : Courts: Defendant won’t disclose whereabouts of $12.3 million allegedly defrauded from investors.
A federal judge on Monday upheld a contempt ruling against Michael Gartner, former president of an Orange County company accused of defrauding 450 investors of $12.3 million, and fined his attorney for contempt.
Judge Manuel Real ordered Gartner to either disclose the whereabouts of money raised by Interlink Data Network of Los Angeles Inc. or stay in jail on a contempt of court charge.
For the record:
12:00 a.m. March 17, 1994 For the Record
Los Angeles Times Thursday March 17, 1994 Orange County Edition Business Part D Page 2 Column 1 Financial Desk 2 inches; 59 words Type of Material: Correction
Gartner case--A story Tuesday incorrectly summarized court rulings in connection with Interlink Data Network of Los Angeles Inc. A judge ordered former President Michael Gartner to be held in civil contempt after 10 days if he does not pay $12.3 million owed to investors or show why he cannot pay it. The judge did not rule on a separate contempt motion against his Los Angeles law firm--Lewis, d’Amato, Brisbois & Bisgaard.
Gartner was arrested Jan. 19 for contempt of court while crossing the U.S.-Canada border and has since been in custody. He is being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles. Gartner’s Costa Mesa-based company never built a video phone network for which it raised the money. The Securities and Exchange Commission sued last summer and won a $12.3-million judgment against Gartner and the company.
SEC attorneys sought the contempt charge last fall after Gartner allegedly used money from bank accounts that the judge had ordered frozen.
Gartner has denied any wrongdoing and refused to provide further information by citing the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. His attorney, Robert Rosen, said SEC officials went too far in pursuing the contempt order, which he believes deprives Gartner of his constitutional rights.
However, the judge ordered Rosen’s law firm--Lewis, d’Amato, Brisbois & Bisgaard in Los Angeles--to pay to the court $41,823 which the firm received from Gartner. The judge also fined the firm another $5,838. The SEC attorneys argued that the money the law firm received was another violation of the asset-freeze order. Rosen could not be reached Monday for comment.
