Firm named custodian of M/V Luta
The U.S. Marshals Service has appointed the National Maritime Services Inc. as custodian of the cargo ship M/V Luta, which was seized on Tuesday after Japanese investor Takahisa Yamamoto filed a civil complaint in federal court against Lt. Gov. Victor Hocog and some owners of the ship.
According to documents filed yesterday by the U.S. Marshals Service before the U.S. District Court for the NMI, the National Maritime Services Inc. shall safely keep, and not allow anyone to “remove, molest or in any manner interfere with the [vessel], save upon the order of the U.S. Marshal of said District.”
According to court documents, it was U.S. District Court for the NMI clerk of court Heather L. Kennedy who issued on Tuesday a warrant for the maritime arrest of M/V Luta and not Chief Judge Ramona V. Manglona, as earlier reported.
George Lloyd Hasselback, counsel for Yamamoto, explained that the “maritime arrest” of M/V Luta means that the federal court takes the vessel under its jurisdiction and hold on to it under the civil claims are disposed of.
“The ship has been seized. My understanding is that the ship has not been in operation about the last two and a half weeks anyway,” Hasselback said. “But as it stands right now, the ship is in the possession of the U.S. District Court. It’s in the court’s care right now.”
Hasselback said the company that they retained will serve as a substitute custodian on behalf of the U.S. Marshal Service.
He said the company will run the ship and take care of it until all of the claims in Yamamoto’s lawsuit are resolved.
Hasselback said one of the things that they asked the court on Tuesday was to appoint a substitute custodian instead of the U.S. Marshal Service.
“Because the general procedure in this is having a custodian on board as opposed to the U.S. Marshals,” he said.
In the lawsuit, Yamamoto alleged that Hocog and co-defendants refused to pay back the $3.4 million that he put up for the vessel.
Aside from Hocog, Yamamoto is suing M/V Luta, Luta Mermaid LLC, Abelina T. Mendiola, Deron T. Mendiola, Fidel S. Mendiola III, Fidel Mendiola Jr., and Robert Toelkes.
Yamamoto is suing them for breach of contract, fraud, and unjust enrichment.
Yamamoto asked the court that the vessel be condemned and be sold to pay his demands, including interest and costs.
This will be a very expensive accumulative cost to overlook this vessel which will be deducted in the end from any sale or an unlikely settlement.
In the end the financier Mr Yamamoto will be the ultimate loser as already there is no way that he will be able to recoup close to what he has shelled out by the auction of that vessel.
Yamamoto will be lucky if he can recoup even $1mill in regards to the vessel alone after all is over, but hopeful he may have other legal remedies to siez any other “assets” that may have been obtained by the misuse of the monies he put out. .
He could go after Toelkes equipment on Tinian, Hokog’s house on Rota and Saipan, new house in Idaho rumored to have been bought by the Mendiola’s and everything else owned by all defendants.
Yep! It’s time to start reeling-in the big fish!
You what will be very interesting is exactly what was the “real” cost of that vessel, from the brokerage firm.
Also exactly who (which person) made the price “deal” with the brokerage? Who was that vessel ultimately sold too? (who handed the broker the money? Was it Victor? How much was Mr. Yamamoto actually charged for this vessel.? How much was paid to the middle man (Victor??)
All of this along with actual shipyard costs etc should come out in trial along with names etc. (Hopefully) With this attorney involved he should be very thorough.
The problem is if this thing is drawn out too long there will be little left to recover after expenses.
The best that Yamamoto can expect is a little money back and if any criminal charges will ultimately come out of this case and a few people end up in jail.
Somewhere along the lines $637K asking price seems to stick in my mind from a brokerage firm but I cannot remember if this was for this particular vessel or a sister ship as there were many of these offshore supply “sister ships” built in the same yard over the years and were for sale. These are old vessels built in the 80’s (from my recollection)