MONTVALE, NJ - Court documents have revealed yet another layer of drama to the A&P saga. The bankrupt retailer is now seeking a total of $3.6 million in damages from two separate companies that withdrew their bids for A&P locations.
Both companies involved had withdrawn their bids for different reasons, with one, Shanghai Enterprises, dropping its $928,000 bid, and the other, Ruben Luna, a $2.4 million bid, news source Lohud has confirmed. According to the A&P’s court filing, the retailer hopes for $1.2 million from Shanghai Enterprises and a minimum of $2.4 million from Ruben Luna.
Ruben Luna’s lawyer, Harlan Levine, reportedly sent a letter to A&P lawyers last month saying that one of the reasons his clients didn't want to go through the deal was because the landlord had formally objected to the sale, Lohud writes, and instead wanted too much in exchange for withdrawing the objection.
A&P reports in its filing that Shanghai Enterprises also notified the company it didn't want to go through with the deal, with analysts citing difficulty finding a tenant for the space, which must be operated as a supermarket according to land-use regulations, as a probable reason.
This isn’t the first lawsuit stemming from a botched A&P deal either. Just last month A&P sued real estate broker Lee & Associates for failure to disclose that its $11.8 million purchase of stores was on behalf of a third party. A&P sued Lee & Associates President James Wacht for $1.8 million in damages from Wacht.
For more on this lawsuit as it develops, stay tuned to AndNowUKnow.
