Probe Resources Ltd. and Gergory Fedun are be
Probe Resources sued by Brown for $399,736
2007-09-21 16:02 ET - Street Wire
by Stockwatch Business Reporter
Arthur Brown, the president and chief executive officer of Maxim Resources Inc., is suing Probe Resources Ltd. and Gregory Fedun. In a lawsuit filed in B.C. Supreme Court on Sept. 11, Mr. Brown alleges Mr. Fedun persuaded him to send $367,000 (U.S.) to Republic Petroleum LLC on behalf of Probe Resources. Probe agreed to pay him back with interest, claims Mr. Brown, but it has not.
Mr. Brown says Mr. Fedun approached him, supposedly on behalf of the company, after Probe signed a tentative agreement to acquire an interest in a natural gas well and a block named the High Island block in the Gulf of Mexico. (According to the news reported in Stockwatch May 7, 2007, Probe was acquiring the interests from a company called Emperor World Trading LLC for $500,000 (U.S.). On Aug. 13, 2007, the TSX Venture Exchange "accepted" -- which means it could not find any reason to reject -- a price increase. In the end, Probe paid Emperor World Trading $550,000 (U.S.) for its interest.)
Mr. Fedun wanted Mr. Brown to help finance the acquisition. He asked Mr. Brown to send $367,000 (U.S.) to Republic, the operator of the project, and promised that Probe would repay him, with interest, by June 30, 2007. Mr. Brown agreed, although he says nothing was written down, and on May 22, 2007, he wired the money to Republic.
Mr. Brown is seeking a $399,736 judgement against Probe Resources and Mr. Fedun, which is how much he paid in Canadian dollars for the $367,000 (U.S.). Mr. Brown is suing Mr. Fedun personally because there is some confusion about his role with Probe Resources. If it turns out that he was not speaking for the company, Mr. Brown wants him to pay the debt.
This confusion, it seems, has stopped Mr. Brown from getting a garnishing order against Probe's bank account before the action. He applied for the order, but the registrar blocked it because Mr. Fedun's connection with Probe Resources was not clear from the lawsuit. Therefore, the registrar was not sure if Mr. Brown actually had an agreement with Probe.
Roderick Anderson of Harper Grey LLP represents Mr. Brown. None of the allegations have been proven in court.
The stock last traded at 47 cents, off considerably from its peak in early August of $1.05. It is still up considerably from the thinly traded 20-cent netherworld it was trapped in before it announced the High Island acquisition in May.