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Former reality TV star Armando Montelongo Jr. lost a bid to dismiss fraud claims against him and his company regarding a real estate investment seminar held by him and his company.
On Friday, the Texas Supreme Court declined to hear Montelongo’s appeal against the lower court’s ruling upholding the claim.
About 423 individuals who attended Montelongo seminars have filed lawsuits, alleging that Montelongo sells “worthless, dangerous and illegal information” and “uses the trust of students to loot accounts.” woke up Of her 37 plaintiffs who live in Texas, six live in San Antonio.
Plaintiffs seek damages of at least $15 million.
A lawyer and publicist for Montelongo did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday, so it was not possible to determine whether Montelongo plans to file a motion for a new trial with the Supreme Court.
Montelongo, 52, lives in San Antonio and is best known as the former star of the cable television series Flip This House. From 2006 to 2008 he aired on A&E, portraying the stresses and successes of risky real estate investing with the drama of the family business.
He capitalized on his television fame by promoting the house-upsetting seminar that landed him in court.
ExpressNews.com:
Former student sues former reality TV star Montelongo for third time
Allegations of fraud by a former student were “the heart of the dispute” with Montelongo, and if he had won to fire them, it would have been a “harder road” for them, said John of San Antonio. “Mickey,” Johnson said.Attorneys representing the plaintiffs.
The legal battle began nearly seven years ago in San Francisco federal court, with about 160 students claiming Montelongo ripped off their savings, ruined their marriages, and led one to suicide.
Former reality TV star Armando Montelongo has had fraud claims filed against him and three of his companies dismissed by the Supreme Court of Texas.
Courtesy/Armando Montelongo ProductionsThe court dismissed the lawsuit after arguing that Montelongo did not have jurisdiction to hear it. A judge later dismissed the case, finding that the plaintiffs had failed to assert sufficient facts to support their claim that Montelongo and his company engaged in a “pattern of extortion practices.” business activities.
In July 2018, one month after his dismissal, plaintiffs filed suit in San Antonio State District Court. They accused Montelongo and his three companies (Real Estate Training International LLC, Performance Advantage Group Inc., and License Branding LLC) of deceptive trade practices and negligence.
Montelongo reacted to the lawsuit on Twitter:
“To 350, now 420, I have been a relatively quiet sideline, because I understand that there is prosperity in peace. A simple heart,” he wrote. ”
Hate understands the price of warI don’t wish you luck, but you need it. Because you will bear the full brunt of my abilities, and I feel a determination you have never dealt with.
you are following a very weak leader
Who will lead you down the road of 2 bk (bankruptcy). ”
Montelongo said in an interview at the time that he planned to file his own lawsuit against all students, but that doesn’t seem to be the case.
ExpressNews.com:
Armando Montelongo has sold his $1.2 million Dominion home off the market after months of no buyers
The former student amended the lawsuit in early 2019 to add claims of fraud, conspiracy to commit fraud, fraudulent concealment, and breach of contract.
In their lawsuit, they argued that Montelongo’s “pressure sales tactics and promises of future good luck contain no educational content.”
“The core of[his]’methodological step-by-step system’ is very simple and can be taught in sentences,” the complaint reads. “I will buy a dilapidated house with a high-interest debt, repair the cosmetics, and immediately pass it on to the next investor.”
Prior to the bus tour event, Montelongo used an affiliate to purchase real estate in the area, “without disclosing his interest in selling or receiving a portion of the property. We will sell it to students at a high price.”
Montelongo responded by filing an anti-SLAPP motion under the Texas Civil Participation Act, which stands for Strategic Litigation Against Public Participation.
These fraud claims relate in part to accusations that Montelongo preyed on students, were “self-dealing” and had deleted Facebook posts critical of him or his seminars.
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A state court judge denied the motion, and Montelongo appealed. The San Antonio Fourth Court of Appeals upheld the technicality judgment, and he appealed to the Supreme Court of Texas. He overturned the Court of Appeals decision and remanded the case to hear the appeal.
In June, an appeals court dismissed Montelongo’s motion. As such, he appealed to the Supreme Court again, which dismissed his appeal on Friday.
Plaintiffs’ attorney Johnson expects the state district court case to reopen in the coming months to allow evidence to be collected.
“Then you can really find out what they were doing under the hood,” Johnson said.
Johnson said he wanted to know Montelongo’s policies and procedures, as well as his net worth, so that plaintiffs could know if there were assets to meet their claims.
pdanner@express-news.net
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