Suit Alleges Conspiracy to Ruin Businessman

SANTA ANA â€”  Michael E. Parker, founder and former president of defunct Parker North American Corp., has filed a lawsuit against members of a bankruptcy creditors’ committee, alleging that they conspired to drive him out of business.

In a suit filed Monday in Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana, Parker sued First Interstate Bank of Nevada in Las Vegas; City National Bank of Beverly Hills; First Constitution Bank of New Haven, Conn; Fleet Bank of Nashua, N.H.; the Los Angeles law firm Frandzel & Share; the Encino law firm Plotkin, Rapoport, Wish & Nahmias; and bankruptcy lawyers Stephen H. Marcus, Gary Plotkin and Michael P. Lawler.

The defendants could not be reached for comment Friday.

In a companion suit filed the same day, Michael Parker and 36 other shareholders of Parker Automotive Corp., an Irvine supplier of automotive products, sued the same banks and lawyers, alleging fraud, negligence and manipulation of the bankruptcy court that is overseeing the Parker North American and Parker Automotive cases. Each suit seeks $270 million in damages.

“Parker Automotive was on the verge of great things, and it was destroyed because these people wanted to get me,� Parker said Friday. “My goal is to get back the money for Parker shareholders.�

The defendants are members of the unsecured creditors’ committee of Parker North American, an Irvine bank-equipment leasing company founded by Parker in 1981.

Michael Parker alleges that the committee falsely claimed that he misappropriated $32.8 million in payments to Parker North American by Columbia Savings & Loan Assn. in Beverly Hills.

A federal grand jury in Los Angeles indicted Michael Parker on charges of criminal fraud, money-laundering, tax evasion and kickback schemes in connection with the alleged payments by Columbia. The indictment alleges that Parker paid kickbacks to a Columbia official, who in turn recommended approval of bogus lease deals between Columbia and Parker North American.

Parker denies those charges.

Parker alleges that the committee made the claim despite being told by a court-appointed examiner, Robert Poyourow, that no such misappropriation had taken place. The claim led a bankruptcy judge to appoint a receiver for the company and its business subsequently collapsed, the suit charges.

Parker North American, which leased banking equipment such as automated teller machines to banks and thrifts, filed for bankruptcy protection in March, 1989.

In 1985, Parker founded Parker Automotive Corp. in Costa Mesa, selling chemicals that flush contaminants from fuel-injection systems in car engines.

Parker resigned from Parker Automotive a year ago.

In July, Parker Automotive filed for bankruptcy protection. A motion to liquidate Parker Automotive’s assets is scheduled for a Dec. 10 hearing in federal bankruptcy court in Santa Ana.