Orange Seeks Renewal of Wymer Suit
The City of Orange and other Southern California municipalities and public agencies have asked the state Supreme Court to reactivate a lawsuit that seeks $40 million from convicted former investment adviser Steven D. Wymer.
Orange, which recouped only $280,000 of $7.2 million it lost in Wymer’s fraudulent investment schemes, joined with 13 other cities and agencies in asking the high court to lift a stay imposed on the case. A Los Angeles Superior Court judge had put the case on hold until Wymer’s bankruptcy is resolved.
The suit accuses Wymer, who managed $1.2 billion through his Newport Beach investment company, of setting up an elaborate Ponzi scheme that improperly transferred investors’ funds from cities to other public agencies to mask losses.
Wymer pleaded guilty in 1992 to fraud and was sentenced to 14 years in prison and ordered to pay $209 million in restitution. Authorities termed it “one of the most significant and financially devastating” cases of its kind.
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