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Letter to the editor

Pearlman hunt off to Germany

A bankruptcy trustee asks to use Pearlman's frequent flier miles.

By HELEN HUNTLEY
Published July 6, 2007

Germany is now the center of attention in the hunt for hidden assets belonging to Orlando music producer Lou Pearlman.

And investigators plan to use some of Pearlman's own frequent flier miles to get there to search.

Bankruptcy trustee Soneet Kapila has asked the bankruptcy court for permission to cash in Pearlman's frequent flier miles and credit card reward points for travel related to the case. He said he and his professional staff expect to travel often to Europe.

Frequent flier miles are normally nontransferrable, but a court order would allow Kapila and his staff to use them.

Indicted for bank fraud, Pearlman is in federal custody and is expected in Florida soon. Still missing is the more than $450-million he owes investors and banks.

Kapila filed a criminal "suspicion of fraud" complaint in German court against Pearlman and Mitchell Louis van Balen of German Invest & Finanzberatung GmbH, also known as German Savings. Last April, German Savings tried to retrieve $250, 000 from a Louis J. Pearlman Enterprises New York bank account, saying Pearlman had assigned his interest in the firm to them.

The court action is designed to provide access to bank records and other information through German subpoenas.

Helen Huntley can be reached at hhuntley@sptimes.com or 727 893-8230.

[Last modified July 5, 2007, 23:08:55]