Argus Realty and Associated Firms Allegedly Ripped Off Investors with High Fees, False Data

A Laguna Niguel realty company and an affiliated investment company in San Clemente are being sued for selling commercial real estate securities that were allegedly "rigged" so the firms would make millions in fees while draining investors of their lifetime savings.

The investors seek compensatory and punitive damages in their suit filed in Orange County Superior Court against Argus Realty, Argus Realty Investors and several affiliated companies and people.

The complaint accuses them of intentional and negligent misrepresentation, securities fraud, aiding and abetting fraud or deceit, negligence, breach of fiduciary duty, elder abuse, and violations of the California Corporations Code and the Arizona Revised Statutes.

"The sponsors and entities behind this offering gorged themselves on unconscionable fees and costs associated with the offering and the management of the properties while placing the investors in a hopeless, fraudulent investment structure that had no chance of providing a reasonable return," reads the complaint.

"While the investment was touted as 'institutional grade,' it was anything but institutional grade. This TIC [tenant-in-common] was no investment in any sense, but a rigged game in which the sponsors made millions in fees while taking savings from people earned over a lifetime."