Nasty business in Austin

31/07/2012

A lawsuit has been filed in Texas as a local entrepreneur claims estate fraud relating to land near to the Circuit of the Americas.

Hillary A. Ryan, principal of Austin's Thunderhill Ranch Holdings L.P, has filed a lawsuit in Travis county against his former financial manager, G.H. "Kam" Kronenberg III, and two real estate holding companies, San Antonio holding companies Accelerator Holdings LLC and Land Accelerator LLC., based on claims of a deal to acquire land near the COTA track in Austin. Accelerator Holdings is understood to be the owner of COTA so the lawsuit cuts right to the top.

It is understood that in mid-2010, Ryan wanted to buy 78 acres in eastern Travis County, close to land set aside for the track due to host the United States Grand Prix just over two years later. His then financial manager Kronenberg, responsible for evaluating and implementing investment opportunities for him, is alleged to have attempted to discourage Ryan from completing the purchase even though he was aware the circuit "was likely to be constructed" and "was likely to have great value," according to the lawsuit.

It is alleged that Kronenberg had Ryan's signature forged and then re-assigned to another of his clients, Land Accelerator Holdings LLC, causing Ryan to lose out on a deal worth an estimated $20m

"It is unfortunate that Mr. Ryan was forced to file this lawsuit over what we believe is a clear abuse of a fiduciary relationship," Eugene "Gene" Egdorf of The Lanier Law Firm, lead counsel for Ryan, told Reuters. "We're asking the court to hold Mr. Kronenberg and his partners responsible for the millions of dollars in lost profits that Mr. Ryan is owed."

According to the Austin Business Journal, COTA Executive Vice President Bruce Knox is listed as the president of Accelerator Holdings in documents on file with the Texas Comptroller, while COTA Chief Financial Officer Dan Allen is listed as the vice president and CFO.

Furthermore, the vice president and secretary of Accelerator Holdings is Kurt Rechner, who is also chief compliance officer for Prophet Capital Asset Management LP, which was founded by COTA investor Bobby Epstein.