Franklin
Mint Owner Says It Was Duped Into Buying Collectibles Company By David McLaughlin
| Dec 29, 2010 12:01 AM ET
The owner of Franklin Mint LLC, which sells
collectible coins and statues, claimed in a lawsuit it was
tricked into buying the business as the company teetered
on the brink of failure.
JSSI Capital Enterprises LLC alleges it
was defrauded into buying Franklin Mint in 2009 because
the sellers made “material misrepresentation and omissions,”
according to a complaint filed Dec. 27 in State Supreme
Court in New York.
“After the transaction, plaintiffs
discovered they had been duped,” JSSI said in court
papers.
Franklin Mint, of Exton, Pennsylvania, sells
coin sets like a U.S. presidential dollar collection for
$259.95, models of cars, including a 7.5-inch long Corvette
covered in crystals for $1,295, and dolls of famous women
like Michelle Obama and Marilyn Monroe, according to its
website.
JSSI sued Moshe Malamud, Sam Malamud and
Steven Sisskind, who owned a majority stake in Morgan Mint
Inc. at the time of the transaction, according to the complaint.
Morgan Mint owned Franklin Mint. Moshe Malamud served as
Morgan Mint chairman at the time of the deal, Sam Malamud
was a director and Sisskind was chief executive.
A call left with a Sam Malamud in Brooklyn,
New York, wasn’t returned. Moshe Malamud and Sisskind
couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.
JSSI is seeking more than $12.6 million
in damages, the rescission of $4 million in promissory notes
assumed in the deal and the return of $1.975 million paid
to two defendants, according to the complaint.
The case is Franklin Mint LLC v. Franklin
Mint Inc., 652386-2010, New York State Supreme Court (Manhattan).