Lawsuit Settled in Murder of Merrill Lynch Manager

MIAMI â€”  Attorneys said Friday that they had reached a settlement of the wrongful-death lawsuit filed against the widow of Arthur Kane, who killed a Merrill Lynch manager and himself after the 1987 stock market crash.

Kane, hurt financially by “Black Monday,� walked into the Merrill Lynch & Co. office in Miami on Oct. 26, 1987, one week after the crash, killing office manager Jose Argilagos and paralyzing his broker, Lloyd Kolokoff.

Attorneys R. W. (Buddy) Payne and Frank Areces, representing Argilagos, announced that the case was settled, but a statement from their office said Dade County Circuit Judge Martin Greenbaum ordered that the amount of damages not be disclosed.

In testimony Thursday, Kolokoff said Kane’s depression grew steadily worse.

“After the crash, he was really depressed--in a state of shock,� Kolokoff said. “As the week wore on, he talked about wanting to kill himself.�

Kolokoff, his wife Wanda and Argilagos’ survivors filed the civil suit against Kane’s wife Judith.

Kolokoff testified Thursday that he had listened to Kane’s increasingly desperate talk about over-dosing on drugs or carbon monoxide and tried to convince him he could bounce back.

“It was money; it wasn’t his life,� Kolokoff recalled telling him. “He just wouldn’t listen to anything.�

Now a Paraplegic

The day before the shooting, a week after the market crash, Kane called Kolokoff at home, the broker said. Kolokoff assured him that he was a valuable customer and that Merrill Lynch would work with him.

However, when Kane came in Monday planning to pay $60,000 to $70,000 to keep his account open, he was told he needed $130,000. Kane said he would return with the money.

He came back later, went into Argilagos’ office with Kolokoff, and pulled his gun.

“Mr. Kane took out the gun and said: ‘Take this, Jose,’ and fired one shot,� Kolokoff said. “And that’s the last thing I remember.�

Now a paraplegic, Kolokoff said his life is dominated by pain. His income has dropped to $45,000, compared to 1987 when he was on track to earning $295,000, he said.

His medical bills exceeded $324,000.