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Bluesky Samoa says they have resolved Montenegro lawsuit in the High Court

Aoe’e Adolfo Montenegro [SN file photo]
Lawsuit dismissal has not been filed yet …
fili@samoanews.com

The legal battle between Aoe’e Adolfo Montenegro and his former employer Bluesky Communication and its Spain-based parent company, Amper S.A., is moving towards being resolved in High Court — soon, according to a brief statement released through Bluesky Samoa.

Samoa News understands that the dismissal of the lawsuit has not been filed yet but will be filed soon and terms of the agreement are reportedly confidential.

In a brief statement released through Bluesky Samoa late Tuesday afternoon, Amper S.A, eLandia International, Inc., and AST Telecom, LLC dba Bluesky announced they have resolved a lawsuit brought by Montenegro, the former Blueksy president and chief executive officer that had been pending in High Court, in American Samoa.

Amper’s executive chairman, Clemente Fernandez Gonzalez said that after “nearly a decade of exemplary service, we want to thank... Montenegro for his work leading to the growth of Bluesky across the Pacific and culminating in this transaction, which will see Bluesky reach new heights under ATH stewardship.”

(ATH is the Fiji telecom company Amalgamated Telecom Holdings Limited, which purchased two years ago, Amper’s telecom business, including the Bluesky group, in the South Pacific.)

“We are pleased that the parties have settled all claims to their mutual satisfaction. We wish Mr. Montenegro success in his future endeavors,” the statement quotes Gonzalez, but provided no other details dealing with the settlement.

Aoe’e’s attorney Barry Rose, of the law firm Mooney Wieland Smith & Rose PLLC (MWS Rose) declined to comment when contacted yesterday.

The law firm and Rose, just last year October, won the right to continue to represent Aoe’e, after Bluesky Communications filed a motion in High Court to disqualify them from representing Aoe’e, in his 25-count complaint, citing a conflict of interest. (See Samoa News Jan. 10, 2018 edition for details)

However, a story published Dec. 28, 2017 by Spanish media, Expansion.com, reveals the move to dismiss the lawsuit in American Samoa.

According to an English translation (through Google translation) of the Spanish language story, Amper’s board decided to “replace” Jaime Espinosa de los Monteros as executive president of the company, a position he held since May 2012. Gonzales would hold the post until a new executive president is designated.

While no reason was given as to why Espinosa was being replaced, the Spanish publication notes that the change occurred, early last month, and shortly after the companies — Amento and Auriga —became, through capital infusion, Amper’s main shareholders.

The story went on to say that on the eve of Espinosa being replaced, Amper, through its subsidiary Bluesky in Samoa, and Montenegro, agreed to finalize all pending lawsuits in American Samoa, which put an end to the crossing of demands between both parties.

“For the agreement, Amper will pay Montenegro $500,000 dollars (420,000 euros) for the completion of its consulting contract, in addition to another contingent amount of $1.5 million dollars (1.26 million euros) at the time it [completes] the total sale of all assets of the Amper Group in the South Pacific,” according to the publication (www.expansion.com)

BACKGROUND

Among the allegations cited in the AST Telecom LLC, dba Bluesky Communications, lawsuit filed May 18, 2017, is that Aoe’e continued to sabotage, hamper and disrupt the sale of Amper S.A. to Fiji telecom company Amalgamated Telecom Holdings Limited (ATH), while he was still CEO of Bluesky.

The lawsuit also accuses Aoe’e and his company, ACMA Management Company, of among other things, diverting plaintiff’s business funds for the defendants’ personal use without consent. (See Samoa News May 23, 2017 edition for details)

A few days later, Montenegro filed a $20 million lawsuit, accusing Espinosa of fraud, bad faith, breach of contract, and other misconduct. The lawsuit contains 25 legal claims and chronicles Espinosa’s alleged misconduct in detail.

Chiefly, the lawsuit recounts that Espinosa improperly encouraged Montenegro to organize a competing Management Buyout Offer (MBO) that would compete against ATH’s preliminary offer. (See Samoa News May 24, 2017 edition for details).