Dissident investors call for trustee to oversee Beso

Beso

Eva Longoria’s Beso in CityCenter’s Crystals.

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Eva Longoria

VEGAS INC coverage

Drama intensified Wednesday at Eva Longoria’s Beso restaurant in Las Vegas when dissident investors, alarmed over this week’s closure of Beso’s Eve nightclub, demanded that the Bankruptcy Court appoint a trustee to supervise the business.

Beso and Eve, doing business together as Beso LLC, filed for bankruptcy in January. But to date, Longoria and her fellow investors have not filed a plan of reorganization to deal with the firm’s $5.68 million in debt.

On July 8, Longoria’s attorney, Robert Shapiro in Los Angeles, sent a letter to parties involved in Beso disclosing the Eve nightclub would close.

“Eve has operated, and continues to operate, at a loss,” the letter says. “We are currently exploring various options to fix this.

“Unfortunately, the positive cash flow from Beso continues to be drained in order to keep Eve afloat,” Shapiro wrote in his letter. “This cannot continue, as it threatens to bring Beso down as well. Accordingly, we believe it is necessary to at least temporarily close Eve as we continue our efforts in this regard.”

Attorneys for Beso LLC investors and creditors Mali and Ronen Nachum — who have been battling Beso for money they claim to be owed — responded Wednesday with an emergency motion in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for Nevada that a Chapter 11 trustee be appointed to supervise the company.

“In 2010, the debtor generated substantial gross income of $14.57 million, with an average monthly gross of $1.166 million,” the motion says. “Conversely, after the bankruptcy filing, the debtor, based upon the monthly operating reports, has allegedly been averaging only $837,517 a month.”

“The closing of one of the debtor’s main, if not most important asset, causes serious financial concerns as to the viability of this debtor,” the filing says.

A trustee could review Beso’s books and records and determine whether closing Eve made sense and determine how to move forward, the motion says.

But an attorney for the high-end Crystals shopping mall, Beso’s landlord at MGM Resorts International’s CityCenter casino resort complex, filed papers later Wednesday opposing efforts by the Nachums to have a trustee appointed.

“As its landlord, Crystals is acutely aware of Beso’s partial suspension of business operations within the premises and is in communication with Beso regarding its plans for reorganization and for the future use of the premises,” said Crystals’ filing. “Although Beso has been unable to pay administrative rent accruing under the lease during the pendency of this Chapter 11 case, Crystals has thus far been supportive of Beso’s efforts to reorganize.

“Moreover, it is Crystals’ belief and understanding that Beso will soon be able to propose a formal plan of reorganization. Accordingly, Crystals adamantly opposes the emergency motion to appoint a Chapter 11 trustee as it does not believe there to be any basis for the appointment of a trustee,” the filing said.

Crystals was owed $2.276 million when Beso filed for bankruptcy, and since then, “Beso now also owes substantial amounts of unpaid rent and other charges under the lease accruing after the (bankruptcy) petition date,” Crystals’ filing said.

Beso LLC as of late Wednesday had not responded to the Nachums’ motion for appointment of a trustee.

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