61%4°' 16 SECURITIES and EXCHANGE Case No
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Case 2:18-cv-05008-FMO-AFM Document 130-2 Filed 12/26/19 Page 1 of 71 Page ID #:3230 1 AKERMAN LLP ELLEN S. ROBBINS (SBN 298044) 2 [email protected] 3 EVELINA GENTRY (SBN 296796) [email protected]@akennan.com 4 601 West Fifth Street, Suite 300 Los Angeles, California 90071 5 Telephone: (213) 688-9500 Facsimile: (213) 627-6342 6 7 MICHAEL D. NAPOLI (admitted(admitted propro hac vicevice)) [email protected]@akerman.com 8 2001 Ross Avenue, Suite 3600 Dallas, Texas 75201 9 Telephone: (214) 720-4360 Facsimile: (214) 720-8116 10 720-8116 11 Attorneys for Intervenors JOHN PERRY, 00 AND PAUL WOLANSKY 12 F-0" 13 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 14 CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 15 AKERMAN LLP 61%4°' 16 SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE Case No. 2:18-cv-050082:18-cv-05008 LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90071 CALIFORNIA ANGELES, LOS COMMISSION, 601 WEST FIFTH STREET, SUITE 300 STREET, SUITE FIFTH 601 WEST 1 (213)627-6342 – FAX: (213)688-9500 TEL 17 PAUL WOLANSKY'SWOLANSKY’S Plaintiff, DECLARATION IN SUPPORT OF 18 INTERVENORS PERRY AND v. WOLANSKY'SWOLANSKY’S NOTICE OF MOTION 19 AND MOTION TO LIFT THE RALPH IANNELLI and ESSEX DECEMBER 21, 2018 STAY ORDER 20 CAPITAL CORPORATION, WITH RESPECT TO THE PENNY LANE AND CENTRAL PARK 21 PROPERTIES Defendants. 22 Hearing Date: Date: January 23, 2020 23 Time: 10:00 a.m. Crtrm.: 6D 24 Judge: Hon. Fernando M. Olguin 25 26 27 28 1 CCASEASE No.NO. 2:18-CV-CV-5008-5008 WOLANSKY DECLARATION 51059222;3 Case 2:18-cv-05008-FMO-AFM Document 130-2 Filed 12/26/19 Page 2 of 71 Page ID #:3231 1 Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1746, I, Paul Wolansky, hereby declare under penalty 2 of perjury that I have personal knowledge of the following facts: 3 1. My name is Paul Wolansky. I am over the age of eighteen (18) and am 4 competent to make this Declaration. I have personal knowledge of the facts stated 5 herein, all of which are true and correct. 6 2. I am the trustee of (a) the Trust f/b/o Sara Joe Wolansky, dated 7 1/27/2004; (b) the Trust f/b/ofibio Natania Wolansky, dated 1/27/2004; and (c) the Trust 8 f/b/o Samuel Wolansky, dated 1/27/2004 (collectively, the "Wolansky“Wolansky Trusts").Trusts”). 9 3. In October 2016, the Wolansky Trusts and I entered into a limited 10 partnership, TGFJ, LP, to invest in leases initiated by Essex Capital Corporation 11 (`Essex").(“Essex”). We invested $2,000,000 in LGFJ, LP. Essex was the general partner and Q 8-4 12 the Wolansky Trusts and I were the limited partners. Under the terms of the gri 13 arrangement, our investment, together with another $2,000,000 in matching funds ci) PI 14 (or the equivalent value in lease assets) was to be used to acquire leases initiated by 1 cn 4; Egccli 15 Essex on behalf of the limited partnership. The TGFJ, LP limited partnership AKERMAN LLP ca 16 agreement provided the limited partners with a put option —– the right to require Essex e 90071 CALIFORNIA ANGELES, LOS 601 WEST FIFTH STREET, SUITE 300 STREET, SUITE FIFTH 601 WEST O 0 (213)627-6342 – FAX: (213)688-9500 TEL 17 to purchase the limited partners'partners’ interests in the limited partnership —– for $2,212,500. 18 Ralph Iannelli personally guaranteed Essex'sEssex’s obligation. 19 4. On December 15, 2017, the Wolansky Trusts and I exercised the put 20 option under the TGFJ, LP partnership agreement. Payment of the $2,212,500 option 21 price was due by January 16, 2018. Neither Essex nor IamielliIannelli paid the TFGJ, LP 22 put option. 23 5. In December 2016, the Wolansky Trusts and I entered into a limited 24 partnership, TFGJ II, LP. We invested $3,000,000 in LFGJ IT,II, LP. Under the terms 25 of the arrangement, our investment, together with another $3,000,000 in matching 26 funds (or the equivalent value in lease assets) was to be used to acquire leases 27 initiated by Essex on behalf of the limited partnership. The TGFJ II, LP limited 28 partnership agreement provided the limited partners with a put option —– the right to 2 CASECASE NO.NO. 2:18-CV-CV-5008-5008 WOLANSKY DECLARATION 51059222,151059222;3 Case 2:18-cv-05008-FMO-AFM Document 130-2 Filed 12/26/19 Page 3 of 71 Page ID #:3232 1 require Essex to purchase the limited partners'partners’ interests in the limited partnership —– 2 for $3,328,750. Ralph IanrielliIannelli personally guaranteed Essex'sEssex’s obligation. 3 6. On February 22, 2018, the Wolansky Trusts and I exercised the put 4 option under the TFGJ IT,II, LP limited partnership agreement. Payment of the 5 $3,328,750 option price was due by March 20, 2018. NeitherNeither Essex nor IanrielliIannelli paid 6 the TFGJ IT,II, LP put option. I subsequently repurchased the Wolansky Trusts'Trusts’ 7 investments in TFGJ IT,II, LP so that I personally own all of the limited partnership 8 interests in TFGJ IT,II, LP. 9 7. Following the defaults by Essex and IamielliIannelli on the put options, I spoke 10 repeatedly with Iannelli to demand payment of the amounts due to me and the Trusts. 11 I also demanded an accounting of LFGJ, LP and LFGJ II, LP, which showed that Q 8-4 12 Essex had withdrawn $1,185,703 more than it had contributed to the LFGJ IT.II. After gri 13 I threatened to sue him and Essex for breach of fiduciary duty and breach of contract, ci) PI 14 IanrielliIannelli agreed to take steps to resolve the debts owed to me and the Trusts. 1 cn 4; Egccli 15 8. With respect to the put option owed on LFGJ, LP, IanrielliIannelli and his wife, AKERMAN LLP ca 16 Melissa Iamielli,Iannelli, agreed to purchase the limited partnership interests in LFGJ, LP e 90071 CALIFORNIA ANGELES, LOS 601 WEST FIFTH STREET, SUITE 300 STREET, SUITE FIFTH 601 WEST O 0 (213)627-6342 – FAX: (213)688-9500 TEL 17 from me and the Wolansky Trusts for $2,000,000 or $212,500 less than we were 18 owed. I have attached a copy of the Purchase Agreement as Exhibit A to my 19 declaration. The IamiellisIannellis did not pay us cash but instead executed a promissory note 20 for the $2,000,000 purchase price. I have attached a copy of the Note and the Pledge 21 and Security Agreement ("Security(“Security Agreement")Agreement”) as Exhibits B and C to my 22 declaration. 23 9. The note is for $2,000,000, payable on demand and accrues interest at 24 8.50% per year beginningbeginning on June 22, 2018. It is secured byby the Iamiellis'Iannellis’ interests 25 in a co-op apartment in New York City located at 257 Central Park West, 4-C (the 26 "Co“Co-Op”).-Op"). Because the apartment is a cooperative, ownership of rights to the 27 apartment is represented byby 785 shares of 257 Central Park West Inc. and a lease for 28 the apartment. I took possession of the share certificate and lease; and filed UCC-UCC-1s ls 3 CASECASE No.NO. 2:18-CV-CV-5008-5008 WOLANSKY DECLARATION 51059222,151059222;3 Case 2:18-cv-05008-FMO-AFM Document 130-2 Filed 12/26/19 Page 4 of 71 Page ID #:3233 1 on the leases. I have attached a copy of the UCC-1 that I filed in New York as Exhibit 2 D. 3 10. The IamiellisIannellis are in breach of the Security Agreement and, thus, the 4 note. At paragraph 16(e), the Security Agreement provides that a default will occur 5 when "a“a creditor of [Iamielli][Iannelli] takes action in court asserting …... an interest in any 6 property included in the Collateral [the CoCo-Op].”-Op]." The Court'sCourt’s order freezing the Co- 7 opOp at the request of the SEC was such an action. Moreover, Iamielli'sIannelli’s ability to pay 8 debts when they come due is another event of default. Security Agreement, ¶ 16(d). 9 I am entitled to foreclose upon an event of default. Id.Id. at ¶ 17. The Court'sCourt’s order 10 freezing Iamielli'sIannelli’s assets renders him unable to pay his debts as they come due. As 11 of December 9, 2019, interest due on the note was $249,178 accruing at an Q s -rz' 12 approximate rate of $465.75 per day. The total amount due on the promissory note gri 13 as of December 9, 2019 was $2,249,178. The note is currently in default. ci) PI 14 11. In July of 2019, I obtained an appraisal on the CoCo-Op.-Op. The appraiser 1 cn 4; Egccli 15 did not obtain entry to the apartment but rather appraised it using his knowledge of AKERMAN LLP ca 16 the building, recent sales in the same apartment line and accurate photographs of the e 90071 CALIFORNIA ANGELES, LOS 601 WEST FIFTH STREET, SUITE 300 STREET, SUITE FIFTH 601 WEST O 0 (213)627-6342 – FAX: (213)688-9500 TEL 17 actual unit, based on a "sales“sales comparison"comparison” approach. Based on a sales comparison 18 approach, the appraiser valued the CoCo-Op-Op at $2,010,000 —– about $139,178 less than 19 the Trusts and I are owed. I have attached a copy of the appraisal as Exhibit E to my 20 declaration.