Legal

Former Aegean Directors and Officers face $300 million lawsuit

Defendants allegedly neglected duties, leaving Aegean’s former CEO, Dimitris Melisanidis, free to defraud firm.

Published

7 years ago

September 23, 2019

Admin

The former Directors and Officers of the now defunct Aegean Marine Petroleum Network Inc. are facing a lawsuit exceeding US $300 million at the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York over alleged misconduct.

A complaint has been filed by a Trustee of the Aegean Litigation Trust representing several creditors against E. Nikolas Tavlarios, Peter C. Georgiopoulos, John P. Tavlarios, and George Konomos on 12 September at the U.S. court.

“Defendants, former directors and officers of Aegean, had duties to oversee Aegean’s business, including duties of care, loyalty, and good faith that required monitoring its systems of internal control, insider transactions, and financial dealings,” stated the complaint seen by Manifold Times.

“However, Defendants knowingly abdicated these duties, leaving Aegean’s former CEO, Dimitris Melisanidis, free to defraud Aegean and manipulate its finances without any monitoring, oversight, or scrutiny.

“In bad faith dereliction and breach of their duties, Defendants turned their heads as Melisanidis essentially had his way with the Company and rendered it hopelessly insolvent.”

The document claimed Melisanidis ultimately misappropriated over $300 million from Aegean by 2018.

Melisanidis first led Aegean to engage in a “sham consulting contract” with OilTank Engineering and Consulting, Ltd (OilTank), an entity owned by him, which resulted in amounts totalling between $68 million and $126 million paid for consulting services in an over budgeted construction project.

He later transferred approximately $186 million between Aegean and OilTank or other firms controlled by himself after construction was completed.

Melisanidis further engineered a massive accounting fraud whereby Aegean accumulated $200 million in fake accounts receivable between 2015 and 2017 from sham entities affiliated with his associates.

He also purported to sell his approximately 22% stake in Aegean for approximately $100 million, where the company never actually paid for the shares.

“Defendants were officers or directors of Aegean during each of these events — all of which resulted from Defendants’ failure to monitor Aegean’s systems of internal control, insider transactions, and financial dealings,” continued the complaint.

“Defendants were all aware of numerous irregularities and other red flags during their tenure, yet they did nothing to prevent Melisanidis from using his position to denude the Company of value.

“In addition, Defendants knew of Melisanidis’s sordid background, including his extensive criminal history for fraud related conduct, his suspect business practices, and his propensity for physical violence.

“But as beneficiaries of Melisanidis’s corporate largesse at Aegean’s expense, Defendants were motivated to utterly disregard their fiduciary duties in order to remain in Melisanidis’s good graces and continue their symbiotic relationship with him.”

The complaint further explained a new group of investors who were appointed independent board members at Aegean later found Melisanidis and his affiliates misappropriating over $300 million from Aegean after completing a 2018 Audit Committee Investigation.

“The new independent directors did not have more or different authority or investigative powers than Defendants,” said the complaint.

“Had Defendants earlier sought to protect Aegean from Melisanidis as the independent directors later did, they could have prevented Melisanidis’s company-destroying wrongdoing.

“These revelations ultimately led Aegean to file bankruptcy days later on November 6, 2018. Now the Trustee, on behalf of the Aegean Litigation Trust, brings this lawsuit to recover the hundreds of millions of dollars in damages caused by Defendants’ breaches of fiduciary duty.”

The original version of the complaint can be read here.

A timeline organised list of events preceding the current development have been recorded by Manifold Times below:

Published: 23 September, 2019

Winding up

Singapore: Liquidator of Selco (Shipyard) Pte Limited issues notice of dividend

Fifth and final dividend to admitted creditors of Selco (Shipyard) is payable from 13 July, according to Government Gazette notice.

Published

1 day ago

July 13, 2026

Admin

A notice of dividend for Selco (Shipyard) Pte Limited, which is currently in compulsory liquidation, was published on the Government Gazette on Friday (10 July).

The following are the details of the notice:

Name of Company : Selco (Shipyard) Pte Limited (In Compulsory Liquidation) Co. Reg. No. 196800580K
Address of Registered Office : 7 Straits View, Marina One East Tower, Level 12, Singapore 018936
Court : High Court of the Republic of Singapore
Number of Matter : Companies Winding Up No.: 125 of 1986
Amount per centum : 0.499 cents to a dollar
First and final or otherwise : Fifth and final dividend
When payable : From 13th day of July 2026
Where payable : c/o PricewaterhouseCoopers Advisory Services Pte Ltd, 7 Straits View, Marina One East Tower, Level 12, Singapore 018936

Photo credit: Benjamin Child
Published: 13 July, 2026

Vessel Arrest

Malaysia: MMEA detains tugboat with undocumented 10,000 litres of diesel in Kuala Langat

Inspection found MYR 5,000 in cash on the vessel and 10,000 litres of diesel, of which the skipper failed to present any document or permit authorising the transport of the diesel fuel.

Published

1 day ago

July 13, 2026

Admin

Malaysia: MMEA detains tugboat with undocumented 10,000 litres of diesel in Kuala Langat

The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) on Friday (10 July) said it detained a tugboat during an enforcement operation in Selangor waters.

Selangor MMEA director Captain Abdul Muhaimin Muhammad Salleh said the vessel was detained at about 6.35am at about 4.7 nautical miles 0.1 nautical miles from the estuary of Sungai Langat, Kuala Langat.

He said the initial inspection found that the vessel in question was operated by a 44-year-old skipper along with a 23-year-old crew member, both Indonesian nationals.

Further inspection found that the vessel did not have a mandatory insurance coverage, including the Limitation of Liability for Maritime Claims (LLMC).

“Inspection also found 10,000 litres of diesel and MYR 5,000 in cash on the vessel,” he said.

“The skipper also failed to present any document or permit authorising the transport of the diesel fuel, raising suspicions regarding the ownership of the controlled items.”

The tugboat and both crew members were brought to the Pulau Indah Marine Police Force jetty before they were handed over to the Selangor MMEA for further action.

He added that the case is being investigated under the Immigration Act 1959/63, the Control of Supplies Act 1961, and the Merchant Shipping Ordinance (MSO) 1952.

Photo credit: Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency
Published: 13 July, 2026

Legal

Evergreen Marine director questioned, offices searched in Taiwan insider trading probe

Investigators searched 10 locations, including Evergreen Marine’s offices, and summoned Chang, his brother Chang Kuo-cheng and eight others for questioning over alleged breaches of Taiwan’s Securities and Exchange Act.

Published

5 days ago

July 9, 2026

Admin

Chang Kuo-hua, a board director of Taiwanese shipping giant Evergreen Marine, has been questioned by Taiwanese prosecutors as part of an investigation into suspected insider trading involving shares of Evergreen Marine Corp, according to Taipei News on Tuesday (7 July).

The Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office on Monday instructed investigators to search 10 locations, including Evergreen Marine’s offices, and summoned Chang, his brother Chang Kuo-cheng, former senior Evergreen executive Ko Li-ching and six others for questioning over alleged breaches of Taiwan’s Securities and Exchange Act.

According to the report, the investigation stems from a shareholder complaint filed in 2024 alleging that Chang purchased approximately 98.6 million Evergreen Marine shares before the company disclosed the sale of about TWD 13 billion (USD 405 million) worth of shares in EVA Airways in 2023.

Later, Taiwanese media reported that Chang Kuo-hua was released on a TWB 120 million bail after he was questioned by prosecutors.

In a filing to the Taiwan Stock Exchange on 6 July, Evergreen Marine confirmed that the Investigation Bureau of the Ministry of Justice conducted relevant searches and investigations at the company.

It added that the company is cooperating with the investigation procedures.

“The company is operating normally, and this incident has no significant impact on the Company’s financial condition or business operations,” it said.

Photo credit: Evergreen Marine Corporation
Published: 9 July, 2026