In the continuing saga of STITA vs the Port of Seattle, on Monday (Feb. 22nd), the Washington state Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the cab company by granting a temporary injunction against the Port of Seattle’s planned contract with Yellow Cab/Puget Sound Dispatch.
This means the Port cannot sign the planned contract “until further order of the Court” (click here to download/read the order as a PDF file), which could happen in April.
STITA’s request to expedite the appeal was granted by Commissioner Mary Neel. The Commissioner’s order states that this case will be heard by a three-judge panel “toward the end of the April 2010 term,” meaning that this ongoing SeaTac soap opera is far from over.
Members of STITA, who filed the original lawsuit against the Port of Seattle on Jan. 29, were obviously pleased with the decision.
“We are thrilled that the court stopped the Port from proceeding with an illegal contract,” said Jesse Buttar, a STITA member and spokesperson. “We’ve only ever asked for a fair process and a legal contract and now we hope the Port has finally listened and will re-do its flawed bidding process.”
Here’s more info from STITA’s press release, issued late Monday afternoon:
STITA, a non-profit co-op with one of the greenest cab fleet in the country, was created in 1989 by the Port of Seattle to exclusively serve the airport and provide reliable service to airport users. Now, after an unfair proposal process, STITA and its approximately 450 members and drivers will essentially be put out of business. They have the airport contract through August 2010.
STITA’s lawsuit claims that the Port’s bidding process violated state law by requiring bidders to commit to pay an unfair concession fee of at least 10 percent of their airport-based revenues to the Port. This revenue system violates the Airports Act, which says airport concession fees must be based upon the actual cost of operations and be reasonable and uniform. Previously, the Port had charged a per-trip fee to taxis based on the airport’s actual cost of services provided to the cabbies.
Additionally, the lawsuit contends that the Port’s new concession fees violate the King County Code and takes away from the King County Council’s authority to set “just and reasonable” taxi meter rates.
Despite protests from STITA to the Port about these glaring problems with the process and the proposed contract, the Port has so far declined to re-do its flawed contract bid.
A second lawsuit against the Port and Yellow Cab by Farwest Taxi was filed on Feb. 12.
Read our previous coverage of this ongoing legal battle here.
As the owner of Shuttle Express, a provider of passenger service at Sea-Tac International Airport, I have been following the Port of Seattle’s recent decision to replace STITA (Sea-Tac International Taxi Association) with Yellow Cab. How could the Port make such a poor decision and why? Even though I compete with the taxis, I feel the need to speak up. When there is such an injustice to the traveling public, questions need to be asked.
Working at Sea-Tac for 35 years, I have firsthand knowledge of airport operations and STITA Taxi. Knowing STITA’s reputation, I thought they would surely be chosen for the new contract for the taxi concession. I was astonished to hear the Port’s decision. The structure of the RFP caused a bidding war, and the Port plans to award the contract to the highest bidder, Yellow Cab. How could they base their decision purely on money and not reputation and quality of service?
Shuttle Express and STITA operate within a few feet of each other so I know their operations and service level. STITA taxi owners maintain their vehicles and have invested in a green fleet, all while making a living wage. And, STITA provides good service, much better than any other taxi service in Seattle.
As a competitor, it would be to my advantage to say nothing and compete against a lesser provider. But I can’t watch this play out without saying something about the Port’s injustice to STITA, and more importantly to you, the traveling public. I have no issue with the Port opening the concession to competitive bid, but its selection based on who will pay the most money rather than service and safety is wrong.
Jim Sherrell is the Owner of Shuttle Express.
More money for the Port may sound good, but in reality the over-inflated fees that Yellow agreed to pay the Port are way off base. There is no way Yellow can use the minuscule taxi fees to fund reservations, dispatch, accounting, marketing, safe vehicles, insurance, advertising AND also pay the Port an exorbitant fee to use the taxi curb. What expenses will the Yellow taxi drivers have to cut to still be able to put bread on the table? Will you feel safe when you climb into that taxi knowing they cannot meet their financial obligations and still make a living?
So why would the Port prioritize getting more money above safety, service and other important factors? What seems obvious is the Port wants more money. Who is eventually going to pay the Port more money? Sure, first it will be the poor taxi drivers. Next, the taxi drivers will ask regulators to allow increased fees. In the end, YOU, the traveling public will be paying the difference with higher taxi fares.
Now ask yourself, is the Port operating in the interest of the traveling public, or is it merely trying to squeeze more money from taxi drivers and you, the passengers?
Will the publicly elected Port of Seattle Commissioners recognize this flawed RFP bid for what it is and correct this radical mistake? My experience during the last thirty-plus years tells me that when the Port Commissioners know the facts and hear from their voters, they will make the correct decision to award the RFP fairly, based on service and safety for the traveling public rather than strictly money from fees.
It’s up to you, the traveling public, to let the Commissioners know your feelings on the issue to have it corrected: www.portseattle.org.
- Jim Sherrell
Owner, Shuttle Express(Jim Sherrell is the owner of Shuttle Express, serving the Seattle region since 1979)
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On Wednesday (Feb. 27th), STITA and Farwest taxi companies sent letters to Washington State Auditor Brian Sonntag and Attorney General Rob McKenna, urging an investigation into the Port of Seattle.
This follows a recent, fast-paced rash of two lawsuits filed against the Port for its alleged mishandling of switching cab vendors over from STITA to Yellow Cab (read our previous coverage here).
The letter to the State Auditor asks him to investigate the Port’s handing of the entire on-demand taxicab RFP (Request For Proposal) process, which resulted in the two recent lawsuits.
The letter to Attorney General McKenna requests not only for an investigation of the Port, but also of lobbyist Chris Van Dyk, who is accused of collusion in the RFP process.
“It’s time for the auditor and the attorney general to step in,” said STITA spokesperson Jesse Buttar in a statement. “We hope they will take a careful look at the allegations against the Port.”
We got in touch with Perry Cooper, Media Officer for the Port, who said:
“Understand we have just received this and will review our records again…
but we are still emphasizing that we are confident the RFP and bidding process was fair, open and transparent.
We have reviewed our approach continually throughout a thoughtful and thorough RFP and bidding process.
We are aware of no facts that would support allegations of collusion.
At no time during the process did anyone file an official complaint.
We were not aware of these allegations until the suit was filed.”
Both letters are enclosed below, and are available also for download here (both as PDF files):
- Letter to State Auditor Sonntag (PDF File)
- Letter to Attorney General McKenna (PDF File)
The Port of Seattle is apparently being sued by a second taxi company – this time by Rainier Dispatch (aka Farwest Taxi) for ignoring collusion.
This is the latest twist in an ongoing legal war against the embattled Port of Seattle, and Rainier/Farwest is now the second taxi company to claim the Port’s process for selecting a new on-demand airport taxi contract is illegal (as we’ve covered previously, the first was STITA).
According to a press release we received Tuesday, Feb. 16th:
Farwest Taxi filed a lawsuit last Friday (Feb. 12th) in King County Superior Court against the Port of Seattle and Yellow Cab, its former partner in a joint bid for the airport contract. The lawsuit claims the Port’s proposal process was illegal. The lawsuit says lobbyist Chris Van Dyk drafted the bid for Yellow Cab, the winning bidder for the on-demand airport contract. Then he turned around and used that insider information to draft a less competitive proposal by the No. 2 bidder, a joint venture between Yellow, Farwest and Orange Cab.
“The Port of Seattle and Yellow Cab should be ashamed of this whole process,” said Gurcharan Dhaliwal, president of Rainier Dispatch. “Yellow Cab and Chris Van Dyk took our bid information and used it to make sure they came out on top, and the Port looked the other way.”
According to the lawsuit, Van Dyk knew trade secrets of the two other bidders in the joint venture, and used that proprietary intellectual property to ensure Yellow Cab submitted the top bid. In addition, in its legal filing, Farwest says it explicitly told Yellow representatives that it did not want anyone who drafted the joint venture proposal to also draft a proposal for any of the three individual members. They said they were assured that would be the case.
The Port’s own RFP states: “One or all responses will be rejected if there is reason for believing that collusion exists among Proposers, and no participant in such collusion will be considered in future proposals for concessions at the Airport.” [RFP, 13.4.1, p. 6]
This latest lawsuit follows on the heels of a well-publicized lawsuit filed by the Seattle-Tacoma International Taxi Association (STITA) on Jan. 29. STITA, which has the exclusive taxicab contract at Sea-Tac Airport through August 2010.
Like STITA’s lawsuit, Farwest Taxi’s lawsuit requests a court order barring the Port of Seattle from officially signing a contract with Yellow Cab. It also seeks an order disqualifying Yellow Cab from future re-bids of the airport contract.
STITA members were encouraged that another taxi company – even one of their competitors – saw the same foul play and are now suing the Port and Yellow Cab.
“Here is yet another reason for the Port to hold off on signing the illegal contract with Yellow Cab,” said Jesse Buttar, a spokesperson for STITA. “We hope the Port takes the opportunity to go back and review this whole process. This illegal process directly affects the 450 families who make up STITA. We just want a fair shot at the airport contract.”
A copy of this lawsuit can be downloaded here (as a PDF file).
Highline Community College’s StartZone is offering free tax preparation workshops and filing assistance to self-employed individuals in King County with total household income of less than $50,000.
Workshops being Feb. 10th, and eligible individuals will receive assistance from a trained and professionally supervised volunteer who will help complete and file 1040, Schedule C, applications for the Making Work Pay and Earned Income tax credits, and other forms.
For more information about eligibility requirements, individuals are encouraged to attend a tax preparation workshop. Workshops will be offered:
- Wednesday, Feb. 10th: 6-9pm
- Wednesday, March 10th: 6-9pm
- Saturday, March 13th: 9:30am – 12:30pm
- Saturday, March 27th: 9:30am – 12:30pm
To register, call (206) 878-3710, ext. 3388, or e-mail startzone@highline.edu.
StartZone’s Business Tax Center is funded by the CFED in partnership with the United Way of King County.
StartZone is a program that helps women, people of color, immigrants and persons with a disability start or grow small businesses in Southwest King County. For information, visit http://startzone.highline.edu.
Highline Community College was founded in 1961 as the first community college in King County. With approximately 18,300 students and 350,000 alumni, it is one of the state’s largest institutions of higher education. The college offers a wide range of academic transfer and professional-technical education programs, with day, evening and weekend classes. Alumni include former Seattle Mayor Norm Rice, entrepreneur Junki Yoshida, Washington state poet laureate Sam Green and WLB Publisher/Editor Scott Schaefer.
by In a victory for private property rights, the SeaTac City Council voted unanimously on Tuesday, Jan. 26th to rescind their earlier condemnation of the “Park-N-Fly” business at 17400 International Boulevard.
The paid parking lot – easily recognizable by its landmark sign, a vertical blue and gold key, across the street from Sound Transit’s light rail station at Sea-Tac International Airport – is the focus of ongoing negotiations over development of a proposed city center there.
Council members voted last Sept. 22 to condemn the property in an eminent domain action. Had the condemnation proceeded, it was anticipated that the SeaTac would sell the land to a private developer who then would build a parking garage and a city center complex.
“We are very pleased that the city council reconsidered its earlier action and upheld the Constitution and respect for private property,” John Houlihan Jr., an attorney for James and Doris Cassan, owners of Park-N-Fly, said following the action. “The Cassans look forward to continuing their long-standing business.”
Doris Cassan added that they now “will continue to pursue with the city what will make a first-class project.” This will be a mixed use development including some combination of a hotel, retail, office space and possibly some multi-family housing in addition to parking.
Councilman Rick Forschler said prior to the vote the earlier condemnation of the Cassan’s property was “a misuse of eminent domain.” He noted that while the council said it wanted to take the property for a “public use,” that use actually would have been a sale of the land to a developer who would build a private parking garage there.
“The Cassans are committed to making this a first-class development,” said Councilman Tony Anderson in support of rescinding the condemnation. He also appealed to both parties to “continue their negotiations (for development of the site) in good faith.”
And Councilwoman Mia Gregerson said she would vote to rescind because “the city and property owners are working together for a development that works.”
Councilman Ralph Shape, who defended the condemnation action at the council’s Jan. 12 meeting, offered no comment before voting to repeal it.
Council members approved the condemnation ordinance last year because they “believed it was in the best interests of the city,” said Councilman Gene Fisher, who introduced the ordinance to rescind at the earlier meeting.
“Because of conversations going on (since the original action) between the city and property owners … working together for development that works,” condemnation of the Cassan property is not appropriate and he could not support it, Fisher declared.
However, he noted that ordinance repeals condemnation without prejudice, which would allow the city to invoke that action in the future “if parking needs increase and negotiations with the property owners stall.”
Earlier in the meeting, Scott Roberts, property rights director with the Freedom Foundation, told council members there is a need for eminent domain reform in Washington and urged the lawmakers to act with that in mind.
“You know the difference between right and wrong,” Roberts added, and rescinding condemnation of the Cassan property “certainly is right.”
Companion bills to limit the use of eminent domain in Washington, introduced at the request of Attorney General Rob McKenna, currently are before the Legislature.
Doris Cassan summarized their plans for the property and urged the council to allow Park-N-Fly to remain in private hands and be developed privately by them.
On Tuesday (Nov. 17th), Leemah Carneh, the man accused of murdering an elderly couple and two teens at a Des Moines home in 2001, pleaded guilty to murder.
Carneh, 28, pleaded guilty to four counts of aggravated first-degree murder with a firearm for the brutal killings. These charges carry a mandatory life sentence, which King County Superior Court Judge Palmer Robinson imposed following the plea.
Carneh, who was 19 at the time, is accused of killing Richard and Jane Larson, 63 and 64, their grandson Taelor Marks, 17, and his 17-year-old girlfriend, Josie Peterson, in the Larsons’ home in March 2001. Peterson was a cheerleader at Evergreen High School when she was killed.
As we reported previously, Judge Robinson, following a competency hearing that took place over several weeks, ruled in August that Carneh was mentally fit to stand trial. He was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic not long after his arrest.
Carneh was arraigned on the four counts of aggravated first-degree murder immediately following Robinson’s ruling.
According to police investigators, Carneh allegedly gunned down Marks’ grandparents, hid their bodies, then waited inside the house for Peterson and Marks and brutally beat them in an ambush when they came home. King County prosecutors allege that Carneh was obsessed with Peterson, who didn’t know him.
He was arrested at his home two days after the killings. When police searched Carneh’s house after the killings they found a photo of Peterson, a ring belonging to Marks, luggage with the Larson’s name on it, a stereo from Marks’ car, a handgun – and bloody clothes.
Despite this evidence, criminal proceedings were delayed while Carneh was treated for his mental condition at Western State Hospital. On several occasions, he was returned to the King County Jail only to be sent back to the hospital when it was determined he still was not mentally competent to participate in his defense.
After prosecutors decided not to seek the death penalty, Carneh will now face life in prison without the possibility of parole. In late 2005, he received a civil commitment to Western State when another superior court judge ruled he still was not competent to stand trial but under state law no longer could be held on the criminal charges.
One year later, prosecutors were notified by officials at Western State that Carneh’s mental condition has improved to the point that he no longer needed constant supervision. They also said he was eligible to earn permission to leave the hospital grounds. At that point, prosecutors re-filed the murder charges and requested a new competency hearing for Carneh. But it took another two and a half years with a new treatment regime before he was finally found fit to stand trial.
Shortly before the original murder charges against Carneh were dismissed, Taelor’s mother Lorraine Marks said, “It’s unbelievable to me. He wrote the book on how to commit murder and get away with it…. I’m furious with the system.”
When the charges against Mr. Carneh were dismissed in 2005 and he was sent from the King County Jail back to the mental treatment facility, prosecutors said it was unlikely, even if he never went to trial for the murders, that he ever would ever be free again.
But late last year, prosecutors learned the defendant had made enough improvement to be unsupervised and perhaps even leave the grounds of the institution. At that point, they re-filed the charges of aggravated first-degree murder against him. Yet now, he again has been found mentally unfit. Western State staff believe additional treatment alternatives can help Mr. Carneh become competent so he finally can stand trial.
The Seattle Times is reporting that Gino Turrella, a Des Moines man, has been convicted of 19 felony counts for threats he made against Boeing, Shell Oil and Chevron Oil.
Turrella was convicted Friday (Nov. 6th) in US District Court in Seattle after a jury deliberated about five hours following a four-day trial.
According to the Times, Turrella was convicted of:
- 2 counts of making interstate communications with threat to injure persons
- 7 counts of making threats by instrument of interstate commerce
- 1 count of possessing a firearm during threats of violence
- 9 counts of identity theft
He faces between 5-10 years in prison. His sentencing date is scheduled for Feb. 19th.
According to documents, Turrella made eight threats via email in May of 2008, posing as other people by using accounts he’d created himself. The threats included one to Boeing in which he claimed that he was going to bring a gun and go on a shooting rampage, as well as detonate himself as a suicide bomb.
When Turrella’s home was searched, police discovered over 100 firearms.
When you do a Google Search for Turrella, you’ll see that he was also quite active Commenting on various websites, oftentimes with fiery language.
Read the full story here.
According to the State of Washington Office of the Insurance Commissioner (OIC), one-time Des Moines insurance agent Brenda L. MacLaren-Beattie and The MacLaren Group have been accused of selling fake insurance policies and taking money.
MacLaren-Beattie and her company have been told to cease and desist immediately of practicing the following:
- Transacting the unauthorized business of insurance in Washington
- Acting or holding herself out to be a Washington insurance agent or broker
- Trying to sell residents any product requiring an insurance license
According to the cease-and-desist oder, MacLaren-Beattie held a valid insurance agent’s license in the state until March 12th, and had been licensed in Washington since Aug. 25, 1997, but the license had expired and will not be renewed.
MacLaren-Beattie is accused of accepting premium payments without actually obtaining insurance, the OIC said.
The case is investigating eight complaints against MacLaren-Beattie. All are from area dentists or oral surgeons who thought they had purchased business coverage (represented as coming from Mutual of Enumclaw or Berkshire Hathaway) from her.
Authorities served a search warrant last Tuesday on MacLaren-Beattie’s office in Des Moines, and the investigation continues, according to a press release.
NOTE: The company named in the order, The MacLaren Group, is NOT related to companies by the same name in Canada and the United Kingdom. MacLaren-Beattie’s company is headquartered in her home in Des Moines, WA.
To read the entire cease-and-desist order, click here.
by Keith Daigle
Des Moines’ vision for the future for Pacific Ridge is restricting one mans’ ability to keep businesses in his building now.
Business and building owner Roy Dunn spoke in front of the city council last night (Thurs., Sept. 10th) asking them to loosen zoning restrictions for automotive repair shops in Pacific Ridge (Zone PR C-1).
The zone currently only allows for three general automotive repair shops. This number was based on the number of automotive repair shops there were within the zone when the regulations were created. The zoning makes the distinction between auto-related business and general repair, muffler lube shops. This is because of the intensity of their use.
The zoning was created that way because the city was hoping have high rises and condos come into Pacific Ridge; they wanted to deter any new auto repair shops.
Dunn’s building (see his website here) was built several years before the zoning changed. But when the regulations were passed the businesses in his building were auto detailing, window tinting and pin striping, among others, which are not considered general auto repair.
When the spaces became available, auto repair businesses came looking to lease space in his building, but were denied licenses by the city because there were already three auto repair shops in the zone.
Dunn Auto Graphics & Lettering is at 22616 Pacific Hwy. So.
Des Moines staff, in their presentation to the council, said many businesses have applied and been denied a license because of the zoning code.
In an effort to lessen what was described as an unintended hardship on Dunn, city staff brought a resolution to the council that would allow for a single multi-business building to have general auto repair businesses.
This would go to the first person to ask for it. Meaning for it to help Dunn he would have to get an auto repair shop into his business soon or risk losing the opening. The city cannot make changes to the zone just for Dunn, which would be spot zoning.
Dunn was appreciative for how the city has worked with him, but he said the resolution did not go far enough.
Council member Scott Thomason agreed. He said it was not the council’s intent, when the original zoning law was passed, to restrict businesses that were already established. And while the business there originally was not considered auto repair, the space was designed for automotive work and should be allowed to be used for that.
Council member Carmen Scott said if there is no demand for businesses then they will fail by themselves. The fact the businesses are still operating, and more people want to move in shows there is a demand for these services.
The council asked the staff to come back with a resolution that would be even less restrictive than what was proposed last night.
LINKS:
After more than eight years, Leemah Carneh appears headed for trial on four counts of aggravated first-degree murder in one of the most brutal crimes ever in Des Moines.
Carneh, who was 19 at the time, is accused of killing Richard and Jane Larson, 63 and 64, their grandson Taelor Marks, 17, and his 17-year-old girlfriend, Josie Peterson, in the Larsons’ home in March 2001. Peterson was a cheerleader at Evergreen High School when she was killed.
King County Superior Court Judge Palmer Robinson, following a competency hearing that took place over several weeks, ruled that Carneh is mentally fit to stand trial. He was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic not long after his arrest.
Carneh was arraigned on the four counts of aggravated first-degree murder immediately following Robinson’s ruling.
According to police investigators, Carneh allegedly gunned down Marks’ grandparents, hid their bodies, then waited inside the house for Peterson and Marks and brutally beat them in an ambush when they came home. King County prosecutors allege that Carneh was obsessed with Peterson, who didn’t know him.
He was arrested at his home two days after the killings. When police searched Carneh’s house after the killings they found a photo of Peterson, a ring belonging to Marks, luggage with the Larson’s name on it, a stereo from Marks’ car, a handgun – and bloody clothes.
Despite this evidence, criminal proceedings were delayed while Carneh was treated for his mental condition at Western State Hospital. On several occasions, he was returned to the King County Jail only to be sent back to the hospital when it was determined he still was not mentally competent to participate in his defense.
If convicted, Carneh will face life in prison without the possibility of parole. King County prosecutors decided earlier not to seek the death penalty. In late 2005, he received a civil commitment to Western State when another superior court judge ruled he still was not competent to stand trial but under state law no longer could be held on the criminal charges.
One year later, prosecutors were notified by officials at Western State that Carneh’s mental condition has improved to the point that he no longer needed constant supervision. They also said he was eligible to earn permission to leave the hospital grounds. At that point, prosecutors re-filed the murder charges and requested a new competency hearing for Carneh. But it took another two and a half years with a new treatment regime before he was finally found fit to stand trial.
No date for his trial has been set. Shortly before the original murder charges against Carneh were dismissed, Taelor’s mother Lorraine Marks said, “It’s unbelievable to me. He wrote the book on how to commit murder and get away with it…. I’m furious with the system.”
When the charges against Mr. Carneh were dismissed in 2005 and he was sent from the King County Jail back to the mental treatment facility, prosecutors said it was unlikely, even if he never went to trial for the murders, that he ever would be free again.
But late last year, prosecutors learned the defendant had made enough improvement to be unsupervised and perhaps even leave the grounds of the institution. At that point, they re-filed the charges of aggravated first-degree murder against him. Yet now, he again has been found mentally unfit. Western State staff believe additional treatment alternatives can help Mr. Carneh become competent so he finally can stand trial.
And once again, his defense attorney is trying to block that move since previous attempts at treatment have failed.
Monday afternoon (June 15th) a class-action lawsuit was filed on behalf of area residents who are upset with Sea-Tac Airport’s third runway against the Port of Seattle, claiming that noise and vibrations from aircraft are over and above what the Port has promised.
The class action lawsuit claims that as the runway was being developed and built, planning documents stated that it was to “only be used as an alternate runway to reduce delays in bad weather.”
Lawyers from the firm Pfau Cochrain Vertetis Kosnoff, PLLC contend that the port mislead residents to believe that the statement in the documents would be followed. However, since the runway’s opening, the plaintiffs claim that the port is now using the third runway for both departures and arrivals, bad weather or not, and at all hours of the day.
The third runway is currently being used more due to the re-construction of the first runway, which is supposed to last through the summer. Lawyers say that a statement on the Port of Seattle’s website claims that the FAA, which maintains control over all runways, will not restrict the use of the third runway.
The lawsuit is seeking damages for lowered property values and also to prohibit airplanes from using the third runway on weekends and between 10pm and 9am on weeknights.
The suit also intends to restrict planes from flying lower than 1,500 feet above the plaintiffs’ homes and only allow no more than one plane to fly over their neighborhoods per hour.
Jeffrey C. Sullivan, US Attorney for the Western District of Washington announced Friday (June 5th) that five people have been arrested in connection with a mortgage fraud scheme that allegedly cheated area banks and property sellers out of more than $18 million.
The five arrested include:
- HUMBERTO A. REYES-RODRIGUEZ, a/k/a Tony Reyes, 42, of Federal Way, Washington
- ALEXIS IKILIKYAN, a/k/a Haikanush Ikilikyan, 29, of Auburn, Washington
- WILLIAM S. POFF, 37, of Marshall, Michigan
- MICKI S. THOMPSON, 54, of Tacoma, Washington
- MARIO A. MARROQUIN, 38, of Kent, Washington
All have been indicted by a federal grand jury for Conspiracy to Commit Bank and Wire Fraud and Money Laundering. The conspirators obtained financing from banks and, in some cases, also from sellers who were convinced to extend private loans for a portion of the purchase price. These private loans, which were not disclosed to the banks, as well as a web of fictitious rental companies, allowed the conspirators to obtain loan proceeds far beyond the value of the assets securing those loans, and beyond their ability to pay.
“This complex investigation uncovered a group of real estate professionals who manipulated home sales for pure profit while some of the properties went into foreclosure and innocent private citizens were defrauded,” said Leigh Winchell, Special Agent in Charge of ICE’s Office of Investigations. ICE will continue to use its unique investigative authority to uncover illegal financial transactions in an effort to stop this type of fraudulent activity.”
According to the detailed indictment, both REYES-RODRIGUEZ and ALEXIS IKILIKYAN worked as both licensed real estate agents and mortgage loan originators. ALEXIS IKILIKYAN’s ex-husband, WILLIAM S. POFF was a licensed notary and worked as a loan originator.
MICKI S. THOMPSON was an employee of Great American Escrow who acted as the closing officer for many of the fraudulent sales. Between 2005 and 2008, the conspirators used straw buyers to purchase and resell properties, obtaining more than 80 loans totaling more than $18 million. The conspirators submitted a variety of false information to the banks such as employment, income, citizenship status, assets and liabilities. The conspirators also submitted false appraisals and created fictitious companies that were allegedly doing repair work on the properties. Money at closing would go to these entities that, in reality, had done no work on the property. Defendant MARIO A. MARROQUIN headed fictitious repair companies and acted as a straw buyer.
In this scheme, the conspirators did not just damage banks and financial institutions. Innocent sellers were harmed when they agreed to loan the buyer a portion of the purchase price, to be paid back over time. The sellers did not know that the conspirators had already obtained 100 percent financing from commercial lenders. When payments were not made and properties fell into foreclosure, and then were sold for less than the total of all loans secured by the property, the sellers holding private notes were left with nothing.
The indictment alleges there were fraudulent mortgage transactions in communities across the Puget Sound region:
- Des Moines
- Tacoma
- Seattle
- Puyallup
- Spanaway
- SeaTac
- Auburn
- Bellevue
- Renton
- Lakewood
- Fircrest
- Kent
- Pacific
- Issaquah
Those arrested in the Seattle area were scheduled to make their initial appearances in federal court Friday afternoon at 2:30pm.
The conspiracy and money laundering charges are punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine.
The charges contained in the indictment are only allegations. A person is presumed innocent unless and until he or she is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
The case is being investigated by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Sarah Vogel and Darwin Roberts.
More information available at the DOJ website here.
Residents in the path of Sea-Tac Airport’s third runway, negatively affected by increased noise and toxic fumes, are meeting with attorneys on Sunday, April 19th to prepare a lawsuit against the Port of Seattle.
The meeting will be held at 2:30pm, Sunday at the SeaTac Community Center, located at 13735 24th Ave. South in SeaTac. Area homeowners are invited. Trial attorneys Michael Pfau and Darrell Cochran, known for a string of successful, high-profile verdicts and settlements, are partnering with Seattle personal-injury attorney Will Dixon.
Sunday’s meeting is a discussion of homeowners’ rights, and potential remedies available under the law. Concerned residents living near the third runway’s flight path first contacted and met with attorneys on Jan. 10th.
Sea-Tac Airport’s third runway went into use Nov. 20th, 2008. Originally, Port of Seattle officials stated in planning documents, such as the environmental impact statement, that the new $1 billion runway was needed to reduce delays during poor weather. But in recent public statements, port officials have said the third runway was always intended to be used at high-traffic times and 365 days a year.
Local homeowners believe the situation will only worsen as departing planes – not just incoming flights – use the new runway. Also, the port plans to shift more traffic to the third runway as it rebuilds the eastern runway.
There are at least two potential lawsuits that are likely to be filed by homeowners. The first, a class-action lawsuit, would focus on the legal principle of inverse condemnation. Basically, plaintiffs believe the fair-market value of their property has been diminished by government “takings” or damages – in this case, by the dramatic increase of planes flying the area for third runway take-offs and landings. Plaintiffs would seek to recover just compensation for damages based on measurably diminished property values.
The second case would be a nuisance or damages lawsuit representing individuals seeking compensation for personal injuries. Local homeowners say throughout the day, big commercial jets are flying over their homes, coating their lawns with jet fuel particles and leaving a wake of toxic fumes.
Michael Pfau and Darrell Cochran are partners at the law firm of Pfau, Cochran, Vertetis, Kosnoff. Pfau and Cochran have years experience in personal injury and class-action lawsuits. In February, Pfau and Cochran secured a $14.2 million settlement from the Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle and a New York-based Catholic order on behalf of two dozen men, who were sexually abused at a Kent orphanage, the Briscoe Memorial School, during the 1950s and 1960s. In 2007, Cochran secured a $13.5 million settlement on behalf of thousands of Washington state students affected by the abrupt closing of the now-defunct Business Computer Training Institute (BCTI).
Earlier this year, Cochran and Pfau left their longtime law office of Gordon Thomas Honeywell to open their own firm, with offices in Seattle and Tacoma.
Will Dixon is a seasoned lawyer with more than a decade of legal experience representing clients in numerous multi-million dollar cases in Washington state and federal courts. Dixon focuses on personal injury, wrongful death, and commercial litigation. Dixon also worked in Gordon Thomas Honeywell’s trial group with Pfau and Cochran before opening his open firm. (Dixon Law Firm, http://www.dixon-law.com)
The meeting will be held in the Banquet Room of the SeaTac Community Center, which is located at 13735 24th Ave South:
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