Vick Accused of Misusing Pension Funds
The U.S. Department of Labor is alleging that Michael Vick improperly transferred money from a pension plan of his marketing company to help pay his bankruptcy attorney and the criminal restitution imposed on him for his participation in an illegal dogfighting operation in Virginia.
The Labor Department announced that it had filed a lawsuit in federal court in Newport News, Va., accusing Vick and others of making prohibited transfers.
"This action sends a message that the Labor Department will not tolerate the misuse of plan money and will take whatever steps necessary to recover the assets owed to eligible workers," Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis said in a written statement.
According to the department's announcement, its complaints accuse Vick of being responsible for $1.35 million being improperly withdrawn from the retirement plan of his marketing company, MV7, between March 2007 and July 2008. The plan covered nine current or former employees, according to the department's announcement.
The money allegedly was "partially used to help pay the criminal restitution imposed upon Vick after his conviction for unlawful dogfighting as well as his attorney in the bankruptcy cases," according to the department's written release.
Two of Vick's former financial advisors were accused of participating in some of the money transfers.
The department is accusing Vick, who is serving a 23-month federal prison sentence in Leavenworth, Kan., for his role in the dogfighting operation, of violating his duties as a trustee of the plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. The department announced that it also filed an adversary complaint in federal bankruptcy court.
Vick's attorney declined to comment, according to the Associated Press.
Vick was ordered by a judge to testify in person at a bankruptcy hearing in Virginia next week.
The quarterback remains under contract to the Atlanta Falcons but is on indefinite suspension by the NFL. He is due to be released from federal prison in July. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said Wednesday in Dana Point, Calif., after the annual league meeting that Vick would have to show remorse to be reinstated by Goodell.
Goodell declined to give a timetable for ruling on Vick's possible reinstatement, leaving it unclear if the decision will be made prior to the 2009 season.
By
Mark Maske
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March 26, 2009; 2:33 PM ET
| Category:
Crime
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Falcons
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Posted by: Lynn18 | April 3, 2009 7:49 PM
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What is the U.S. Department Of Labor doing to get back the millions of retirement funds that people lost dealing with Madoff, Wall Street, and other financial institutions? If there is no protection for 401k's then they need to stop being used as retirement plans. When you are saving for retirement regardless if it is a traditional pension plan (which hardly exist anymore), IRA, or a 401k there should be some safe guards in place. The idea that you could loose all the money you saved for your retirement is unreal, and Bush wanted to let people manage their social security on Wall Street. He probably new then that they were going to be hit hard, and needed a source of immediate cash because all the credit had been maxed out.