Posted on 03/31/2009 11:58:47 AM PDT by nickcarraway
Watch what you say about Monex Deposit Co. – the Newport Beach precious metals dealer doesn't take kindly to insults.
Case in point: Richard and Jason Gilliam of Laguna Woods, a father and son who lost $32,000 after investing with the firm, launched a Web site bashing the company and now face a defamation lawsuit seeking $6 million in damages.
It's surely a David-vs.-Goliath tale, but by their own admission, the Gilliams were spoiling for a fight. On MonexFraud.com, they call the company's president a "ruthless sociopath" and say the firm's sales pitch is premised on "flat-out lies."
They post "horror stories" from purported clients, such as a man who says he lost $200,000 and now can't pay his child's medical bills. "Thanks to the scam at Monex," says the Web site, the baby "is going to die!"
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Monex sued earlier this month, saying the Gilliams had embarked on a defamatory "extortion caper" that is "unprotected by constitutional free-speech guarantees."
Jason Gilliam posted the news online and suggested Monex had played into his hands. "Well folks I've asked for it, hell I've practically begged for it!" he wrote. "And now they've finally done what I told them to do, which was the stupidest thing they could possibly have done … They've filed a lawsuit against me for defamation, and a whole lot of other ... trumped up stuff!"
"Now the truth will come out and we'll see who is the victor!" Jason Gilliam wrote.
At this point, the smart money might be on Monex. A federal judge this week said the company has a "reasonable probability of success" in its case and ordered the Gilliams to stop "extorting" Monex – they admittedly demanded $20 million, supposedly on behalf of themselves and other aggrieved parties, to shut down MonexFraud.
(Excerpt) Read more at ocregister.com ...
They shouldn’t have asked for money in return for shutting down the site. They could lose, even if the company wasn’t on the up-and-up.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.