Photo: Jason Nissen and model Brooklyn Decker at the 2013 Super Bowl.
A judge ordered the seizure of cash and other assets from former National Event Ticket Co. (NECO) CEO Jason Nissen in response to a lawsuit brought by two investors in his alleged Ponzi scheme in New York. Iq-mag.net reports that the investors, Taly USA Holdings and SSL USA Holdings have filed claim for damages in excess of $25 million, plus interest.
The order, issued by judge O. Peter Sherwood, authorized sheriffs to sieze five bank accounts, stocks and shares in two companies, and two properties in New York. Nissen, who was removed as CEO of NECO – which soon after filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection – following the allegations, was also forbidden from making any sale or transfer of property in which the defendants have interest other than to a sheriff.
Amplifythemag.com reports that NECO’s bankruptcy filing indicates it has less than $10 million in assets and as much as $50 million in liabilities and that the company has laid off all but a handful of employees.
“The last remaining event for which NECO anticipates material sales of tickets is the 2017 US Open,” according to the bankruptcy filing. “The Debtor has previously purchased a substantial block of tickets for this popular Grand Slam tennis event, and anticipates being able to resell those tickets at a profit.”
Company representatives have maintained that Nissen’s activities were unknown to anyone else at the company until May 10.
In another odd twist, the case against Nissen may imperil an unrelated corruption case, also in New York.
Jona Rechnitz, who pled guilty to corruption charges in New York and agreed to cooperate with the government, allegedly served as a recruiter of potential investors to Nissen’s scheme, which could damage his credibility in the upcoming case involving three police officers, a former hedge fund manager, and the onetime president of the city correction officers’ union, according to the New York Times.