His name is Allen Weintraub and he's either certifiable or prosecutable. He and his Sterling Global Holdings "hedge fund" offered to buy out Eastman Kodak for $1.3 billion and AMR, the parent of American Airlines, for $3.25 billion. The only rub – he has no money.
That little detail didn't stop Weintraub from sending offering letters to the two companies, even though three banks turned down his loan applications. The Securities and Exchange Commission was sent copies of the letters. According to Kodak's David Lanzillo:
"We thoroughly investigated the letter from Sterling Global, believed it to be a hoax, and turned the matter over to the SEC." AMR's Ed Martelle added: "we have no corroborating information to demonstrate the offer described in the letters as legitimate. We believe the SEC actions speak for themselves."
The SEC complaint was filed in Florida federal court and reads in part:
"Neither Weintraub nor Sterling Global has the means to purchase either Kodak or AMR by tender offer or otherwise as they have no substantial assets or resources. Weintraub falsely claimed that he had bank agreements in place to obtain the approximately $4.5 billion in financing that the tender offers would require. In communications with various media outlets, Weintraub misrepresented his experience in purchasing and operating companies and failed to disclose his prior felony convictions, SEC injunction, and officer and director bar."
Weintraub is quoted as saying:
"We work similar to a hedge fund, but with a very limited amount of investors."
Uh-huh!
