Superior Court Appoints Special Master for Condominium Association Led by Newport Businessman
Thursday, July 25, 2019
Newport Superior Court Judge and former RI Lt. Governor Richard Licht has appointed a Special Master for the 10 Brown & Howard Wharf Condominium Association. Newport businessman Johannes Flo, a Norwegian national who was the subject of a major exposé by the Norwegian publication VG, and who has a significant ownership interest in the Bard Group, LLC, an entity that owns seven units, assessed for nearly $5.2 million, in the Condominium Association is the President and Secretary of the Condominium Association’s Executive Board.
According to the Norwegian magazine, “A Norwegian expatriate has been living the American good life in recent years. Oslo District Court thinks that Johannes Erskine Flø received millions of Norwegian kroner after a rich widow in Oslo was defrauded of NOK 17 million, or more than USD 2 million.” The Norwegian story published in 2018 wrote, “In idyllic Newport on the east coast of the United States, a well-dressed Norwegian approaches on foot. His black sweater is emblazoned with a white dollar sign. Johannes Erskine Flø, 41, owns fashionable apartments and business properties in Newport worth more than NOK 60 million, or about USD 7.5 million.” In 2018, as GoLocal first looked into Flo’s business activities in the United States, lawyers for Flo claimed that the VG article was false and sought to block GoLocal from republishing any elements of the claims made in the VG article. When Flo's lawyers sent a cease and desist to GoLocal, GoLocal published the lawyers' letter in full. READ HERE
The Order Appointing Special Master, dated July 22, 2019, appoints John Morgan to “develop and recommend a corrective action plan to ensure that the Association repairs the roof, elevator and fire alarm system, and prepares an annual budget,” among other things. It also allows Special Master Morgan to communicate directly with the Judge, if advance notice to the parties is not practicable.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTNone of the properties Mr. Flo owns in his individual capacity are the subject of the Order appointing Special Master Morgan.
According to Newport Tax Assessor’s database, Flo’s Bard Group owns seven units at 10 Brown & Howard Wharf assessed for nearly $5.2 million
#105 Assessed for $251,200
#106 Assessed for $247,900
#107 Assessed for $302,400
#201 Assessed for $619,700
#301 Assessed for $1,449,100
#302 Assessed for $1,063,500
#303 Assessed for $1,264,900
Superior Court Judge and former RI Lt. Governor Richard Licht appointed Morgan. Special Master Morgan, who owns the Warwick-based Rhode Island Property Advisory Company did not return requests for comment. He is a significant political donor, having made nearly $10,000 in donations to a range of high-profile Rhode Island politicians including former Governor Don Carcieri, former Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisian, House Majority Leader Joe Shekarchi, and former Providence Mayor Joseph Paolino.
According to court documents, the move to appoint a Special Master for the Condominium Association led by Flo, and in which Flo’s entity has a substantial ownership interest, was led by Rhode Island businessman Mike Della Grotta, the President of Epic Enterprises LLC and two other unit owners. Della Grotta has claimed in other legal documents that Epic Properties lent Flo’s company — the Bard Group LLC — $1 million, and Mr. Flo and his Bard Group, LLC, in turn, asserted claims against Della Grotta.
The Norwegian magazine ties Flo to the Della Grotta loan and to a range of other schemes. The Norwegian Publication is owned by the global media company Schibsted Media Group — an international media group with 8,000 employees across 22 countries.
EDITOR'S NOTE: An earlier version of this story contained several mistakes, including that the Newport Superior Court named a receiver, rather than a special master; unintended statements of individual ownership of properties, rather than the Condominium Association; and other inadvertent inaccuracies. We apologize for the confusion.
