Minnesota Wild forward Dany Heatley has filed a lawsuit in Calgary against his former agent -- and his former agent’s parents -- for $11 million.
More, from the Globe and Mail:
[Heatley] alleges that his former agent and business adviser, Stacey McAlpine, as well as McAlpine’s parents, Gerald and Eugenia, lured him into several real-estate ventures across Canada and the United States with promises of huge returns that never materialized.
The lawsuit, filed last week in the Court of Queen’s Bench in Calgary, also alleges that Heatley’s former agent dipped into his bank accounts and made unauthorized withdrawals of more than $4-million.
The 20-page statement of claim alleges conspiracy, oppression, breach of fiduciary obligation and unjust enrichment by the McAlpine family, which Heatley accuses of using multiple corporate entities “as a sham, cloak or alter ego, in order to shield themselves from personal liability.”
The Globe reports that Heatley and McAlpine became close friends after Heatley was behind the wheel during a car accident that killed his Atlanta Thrashers teammate, Dan Snyder, in 2003.
“Stacey provided [Heatley] with considerable emotional support and advice during his recuperation from a tragic automobile accident in Atlanta, Georgia,” the lawsuit notes. “During this period their friendship flourished, particularly [Heatley’s] reliance and trust in Stacey.”
The lawsuit also claims Heatley invested millions in various real estate ventures spearheaded by the McAlpine family. Last year, Heatley was issued a default judgement against NSEM Management -- the McAplines were the principals -- for more than $1.3 million.
According to court documents, that money was never paid. Probably because nobody knows where Stacey McApline is.
Heatley’s other agent, J.P. Barry, said “nobody” has been able to reach McAlpine since this case started.
“I’m not going to speak for Dany, but he’s going to proceed on this,” Barry told the Globe. “We’re just going to move forward with the claim.
“It’s a sad tale of mismanagement,”
