Phoenix court slaps $18M judgement against wife of Ezri Namvar A Phoenix court has issued an $18.4 million judgment against the wife of convicted Los Angeles real estate developer and businessman Ezri Namvar. Ilana Namvar is appealing the Sept. 20 ruling by a Maricopa Superior Court in favor of Armed Forces Bank NA. The Kansas-based bank loaned the Namvars and an Arizona company called Kohnam 26 LLC $20.8 million in 2005. That loan was modified in 2007 to $17.4 million, according to court documents. The bank filed a breach of contract lawsuit in Phoenix in 2008 claiming the Namvars and Kohnam stopped loan payments. Ezri Namvar is currently in federal prison in California after being convicted of wire fraud charges. He was accused of stealing as much as $21 million from investment clients. In court documents, Mrs. Namvar claims the trial court erred in allowing a plaintiff’s witness to testify, but then disallowing some defense testimony. In those same documents, Mrs. Namvar claimed she did not have the funds to pay for fees related to the appeal, claiming she does not have employment and depends on family financial support. The once wealthy couple once lived in an $8 million Brentwood mansion and were very active in Los Angeles’ Iranian-Jewish community, according to various media reports about the demise Ezri Namvar, who was often called the Bernie Madoff of Beverly Hills. Mr. Namvar, 62, is an Iranian-Jew who built a real estate investment business and owned a number of Los Angeles hotels. He is serving a seven-year prison term in Taft, Calif. after being convicted of defrauding investors, many of them also Iranian and Jewish. Ezri Namvar filed for bankruptcy protection in 2008. That resulted in the original case in Phoenix being dismissed, but Armed Forces refiled the breach of contract suit against Mrs. Namvar and Kohnam. Arizona Corporation Commission filings show Kohnam 26 is associated with another Arizona company called Beshmada LLC. That company’s principals are a number of members of the Namvar family, according to ACC documents. Kyle Hirsch, a Phoenix attorney for the Bryan Cave LLP law firm, is representing Armed Forces Bank in the case. He declined comment citing firm policy not to talk to the media regarding ongoing cases. Ilana Namvar did not respond to telephone calls and an email Thursday. Mike Sunnucks writes about politics, law, airlines, sports business and the economy.
Posted on: Mon, 28 Oct 2013 02:56:53 +0000
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