Former Queen Mary operator Joseph Prevratil and his management company were paid nearly $8 million in salaries, benefits and other disbursements between 2000 and 2007, according to an auditing firm hired by the city of Long Beach, the Long Beach Press-Telegram reports.
Results of the audit were made public Tuesday as part of a motion filed in the Chapter 11 bankruptcy case of Queen’s Seaport Development Inc. – a company, owned by Prevratil, that leased the historic Queen Mary from the city for many years.
The motion, filed by the city, opposes the terms of a settlement recently struck between Prevratil and bankruptcy trustee Howard Ehrenberg with regard to certain payments received by Prevratil and uncovered by the auditing firm, Grobstein Horwath & Co.
The payments included about $100,000 of QSDI funds used to purchase and maintain a Hawaiian condo between 2002 and 2004. Prevratil has agreed to sell the condo, now worth more than $1 million, to settle the dispute.
But City Attorney Robert Shannon said Tuesday the proceeds from the condo aren’t nearly enough.
“The trustee is leaving a large amount of money on the table,” he said. “Money the taxpayers are owed.”
Prevratil said taxpayer money is exactly what was wasted on Shannon’s audit. He disputed the amount he and his company, Leisure Horizons, had received through the years, and said he was shocked by the new accusations.
