The receivership overseeing the Jay Peak and Burke Mountain ski areas will receive $5.2 million in a settlement approved this week, stemming from a lawsuit investors filed against attorneys they allege had a conflict of interest.
Attorney Russell Barr’s attempt to intervene on behalf of alleged defrauded investors in the criminal case against Jay Peak and AnC Bio Vermont developers is shot down.
Under the deal, the immigration attorney would have to sign a statement saying he relied on the state’s purported oversight of the scandal-plagued developments for ensuring no wrongdoing.
Ed Carroll and Mark Scribner simultaneously represented the interests of the Jay Peak corporation and immigrants seeking green cards. The attorneys allegedly aided Bill Stenger in duping investors.
A trial initially set for October of this year is now scheduled for April 2021 as attorneys cited the Covid-19 pandemic for the latest change due to the difficulty the virus currently creates in holding jury trials.
The ruling released Tuesday means Jay Peak’s former owner facing federal fraud charges must either hire a new attorney, apply for one at a taxpayers’ expense, or represent himself.
Lead attorney for Quiros cites a ‘breakdown in attorney-client relationship’ in request to withdraw his representation for Jay Peak’s former owner under criminal indictment.
Prosecutors said in May that the criminal investigation into the alleged fraud was ongoing, but no additional charges have been brought against any other defendants
Mont Saint-Sauveur International fraudulently accepted $18 million in immigrant investors’ funds, the Jay Peak receiver says.
State officials are seeking authority to sell off other properties that belonged to former Jay Peak owner Ariel Quiros.
The former Jay Peak owner argued that his insurance covered legal fees for ‘wrongful acts’; the insurance company said Quiros failed to disclose alleged actions that led to investor fraud lawsuits against him.
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Lawyers for the Jay Peak developer accused of fraud will get part of a $1 million tax refund that Quiros received.