Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher, prominent Albuquerque lawyer Turner Branch and Cross Country Auto Sales owner Randy Eastburg were close friends and business partners.
In 2006, they opened a General Motors new car dealership in Tucumcari together.
In 2007, they bought a filly race horse together, naming her Url of East Branch after all three of them.
Now, they are embroiled in a lawsuit in which Branch, Urlacher and another associate and longtime friend of the former Lobo and pro football superstar, Bryce Karger, are accusing Eastburg and his wife of embezzlement and larceny.
Eastburg denies the allegations and claims his companies are owed more than a quarter of a million dollars.
Branch, Urlacher, Karger -- a Lovington high school basketball teammate of Urlacher's and his agent -- and Eastburg formed a limited liability company in 2006 to operate Brian Urlacher Cross Country Auto Sales in Tucumcari.
They called it BUKE LLC using the first initials of the four names.
Those were happier times.
In an eight-count civil lawsuit filed in state District Court in Albuquerque on June 24, Eastburg and wife Lisa are accused of using partnership accounts and lines of credit to their advantage as owners of Cross Country Auto Sales dealerships and Southwest Auto Wholesale, to the detriment of BUKE LLC.
The suit charges breach of fiduciary duty, unfair competition and racketeering among other counts.
The court action claims Eastburg ran the partnership company for the benefit of himself, his Cross Country dealerships and his other company, Southwest Auto Wholesale.
The complaint contends Eastburg lacked access to General Motors Acceptance Corp. and New Mexico Bank and Trust lines of credit to purchase vehicles except through BUKE.
According to the suit, that access was exploited to buy used vehicles that were paid for by BUKE but given to Cross Country Auto Sales and then sold by Cross Country Auto Sales or Southwest Auto Wholesale for a profit.
It also alleges Eastburg:
Sold cars to the company (BUKE) from Cross County stores "at prices in excess of the fair market value."
Bought vehicles from the company for his Cross Country dealerships "at prices below the fair market value."
Sold vehicles to the company that Cross Country dealerships were unable to sell, and sold vehicles owned by BUKE to Cross Country dealerships even though there was a retail offer to purchase the vehicles.
Eastburg's actions caused the line of credit to go into default, the suit alleges, leaving the accounts unavailable to BUKE. It also caused the company to pay expenses and interest on the GMAC line of credit, to auto auctions, to Cross Country dealerships or to other parties to the benefit of Eastburg and Cross Country stores, the suit alleges.
W. Spencer Reid, an attorney representing BUKE, said the company "has continued to work with its creditors to resolve all issues" and that "other members and BUKE itself were still learning what (Eastburg) did."
The suit asks for compensatory and punitive damages, attorney's fees and other costs. The lawsuit doesn't designate an amount, but Reid told the Journal the "damages are expected to be substantial."
Eastburg denied the allegations in a counter claim filed in July and said BUKE owed Cross Country Auto Sales, Cross Country Auto Sales Westside and Southwest Auto Wholesale about $280,000.
A Cross County Auto Sales executive told the Journal that Eastburg had stepped down as general manager of the company in September, but said Eastburg still had an ownership stake in the company.
Nelson Franse, an attorney lawyer representing Eastburg, said Eastburg resigned from his position as GM at Cross Country Auto Sales "to pursue other interests," adding the resignation has nothing to do with the suit against him.
"It's always sad when you have people who are very good friends and have been through a lot together end up in litigation together," Franse told the Journal. "That's too bad."
Eastburg did not return Journal messages seeking comment.
No court date has been set.
More lawsuits
Brian Urlacher Cross Country Auto Sales LLC of Lovington filed a lawsuit in state District Court there in August accusing Eastburg, his wife, his companies and a couple of company principals of fraud, unlawful trade practices and civil conspiracy.
The suit alleges Eastburg bought vehicles from businesses he owned or controlled at inflated prices for use by Urlacher's dealership. The lawsuit contends this was "self dealing" by Eastburg that resulted in overpayment, excessive interest and financing costing Urlacher's dealership $2.2 million.
New Mexico Bank and Trust filed a foreclosure action against Eastburg, Southwest Auto Wholesale and others in August for property on Lomas Boulevard NE, the address of the east side Cross Country Auto Sales location in Albuquerque. The bank contends more than $1 million is still owed on a $1.7 million mortgage.
Cross Country Auto Sales consolidated into the Lomas location at the beginning of October. The west side location at 9790 Coors Blvd. NW has closed.
Franse, who is representing Eastburg in the BUKE lawsuit, told the Journal the location "was closed as a costcutting measure," adding it should not come as a surprise given the current state of the economy.
A former Cross Country Auto Sales Westside employee claims in a lawsuit filed in state District Count in Albuquerque in January that as general manager he became aware of "unethical and illegal" accounting by Eastburg and accounting staff, was fired for calling attention to the issue and was blamed for it.
The former employee, Allen Culp, also wants a $50,000 refund in an ownership share he purchased as an employee of Cross Country Auto Sales Westside.
A counter-claim states Culp failed to pay owed money to sister company Southwest Auto Wholesale, inflated inventory values and mismanaged the dealership.
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