Denver, Colorado – Brian Watson, and his 24-year-old real estate investment company Northstar Commercial Partners, are now fighting back with a federal lawsuit against a former employee believed to have lied to get an Amazon payout and a job in exchange for inflammatory, proof-free information about Watson and his company.
A lawsuit filed this month in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado (Case No. 1:24-cv-02606) accuses Northstar’s former employee Daniel C. Mulcahy of allegedly making false claims of an illegal kickback scheme. The lawsuit alleges Mulcahy sent an email to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos in December 2019 accusing Northstar of paying as much as $50 million in kickbacks to Amazon employees to win data center development and ownership contracts.
According to the complaint, Mulcahy admitted he had no evidence to support his allegations and was only acting on “assumption and hearsay.” The lawsuit says Mulcahy’s emails to Bezos asked for a job, repeatedly pushed for compensation in exchange for the information and that Mulcahy was worried he’d be found out, attempting to arrange a non-disclosure agreement.
In 2024, federal prosecutors dropped the criminal investigation that Amazon lobbied for, and in an historic judicial moment, vacated guilty pleas as “not being in the best interests of justice”. Last year, the court also granted summary judgment against 7 of Amazon’s 8 claims, as not being worthy to go to trial. Amazon has appealed this decision. According to the lawsuit, Mulcahy admitted in a deposition, “I didn’t have any true evidence” before making the allegations against Northstar.
The lawsuit says that Mulcahy breached his employment contract with Northstar by secretly starting his own competing businesses, Dacia Capital Management and USA Camping Company, which own eleven RV parks throughout the U.S., including Oregon, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, and Florida. It is alleged that Mulcahy did this while still working for Northstar, stealing the company’s investors, clients, information and employees. It also alleges Mulcahy may have initiated an SEC investigation into Northstar, as he may have wanted to collect money from the SEC as he requested of Amazon, further compounding the legal and financial troubles faced by Watson and his company.
The complaint alleges Mulcahy’s actions destroyed Watson’s reputation and caused tens of millions in losses through destruction of business opportunities, assets, and emotional distress. It accuses Mulcahy of breach of contract, unjust enrichment, breach of fiduciary duty, and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Watson and Northstar have stated over $2 billion dollars in damages, plus additional amounts as the court may award.
Read the full article at lawfirmnewswire.com.
Nicole Westbrook, an attorney with Jones & Keller P.C., litigates complex business matters, achieving outcomes that improve lives, and is a trial instructor and frequent writer on legal issues. Nicole can be reached at nwestbrook@joneskeller.com.
This information is not intended as legal advice. Readers should seek specific legal advice before acting with regard to the matters addressed above.