By FIONA ROTHERHAM
The two Australian directors of mining-turned-chicken-fertiliser company Max Resources have been charged by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission.
Jeffrey Verheggen, a former Perth stockbroker, and accountant Michael Langoulant appeared in the Perth Court of Petty Sessions yesterday on charges of improperly using their positions as officers of Robregal Investments, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Max Resources.
No further charges are expected to be laid.
The commission claims that in December 1997 the pair improperly authorised the transfer of 600,000 shares in Australian- listed Intrepid Mining Corporation, since renamed Cobra Resources. These shares were held in the name of Robregal.
Another firm, Gyron International, gained financially from the transfer. Commission spokesman Michael Gething refused to give information on Gyron.
Mr Verheggen and Mr Langoulant were bailed and remanded to reappear before the court on August 30.
Max Resources went into statutory management in August 1988 after its delisting from the stock exchange.
The statutory managers, John Waller and Richard Agnew, of PricewaterhouseCoopers, had raised concerns with the commission about the sale of Max's 30 per cent stake in Intrepid.
The NZ Securities Commission report released in January also questioned misleading information given to shareholders about the profit generated from this sale. Max is still owed $A750,000 ($967,000) from two Hong Kong companies in relation to the sale.
The statutory managers have been awaiting the outcome of the Australian inquiry before deciding on potential legal actionof their own.
Max Resources was a NZ-registered company operating mainly in Australia.
The two independent New Zealand directors became concerned about mismanagement in late 1997.
Director Owen McShane was pleased charges had finally been laid but regretted that NZ authorities failed to back court action he and co-director Tom Johnston took in Perth in March 1998 to appoint a provisional liquidator on the grounds that Max Resources was insolvent. This action was later withdrawn.
The NZ Securities Commission report found that another Australian director, Peter Briggs, and Mr Verheggen broke the law by failing to reveal to the stock exchange the extent of their substantial shareholdings in Max.
Max directors charged over transfer of shares
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