China Construction America, Inc. (“CCA”) and various related business entities are being  sued in a  New York State court for, among other alleged  wrongdoings, engaging in massive fraud, malicious acts of deceit and interference, and breaches of contract as part of a multi-year self-enrichment scheme related to the Baha Mar Resort project.

The lawsuit filed is  by BML Properties Limited, the investment vehicle of original developer Sarkis Izmirilian which  highlights what they call,  CCA’s ongoing and intentional misconduct.

As a result of the court action, CCA may face over

$2.25 billion in liability for misleading and defrauding BML Properties and depriving it of its investment.

According to the lawsuit, it was CCA’s larger intent and financial interest to establish this project as a beachhead in the Americas and the Caribbean;  train its unqualified workers and staff in order

to obtain and then construct other projects throughout the Americas and Caribbean;  and submit sham billings for hundreds of millions of dollars as the contractor and construction manager of the

Project.

According to the lawsuit, “the scheme was based on CCA’s efforts to falsely create the appearance that it was working toward an on time and on budget opening in December 2014,  while knowingly and fraudulently concealing its real intent not to construct the Project on time and on budget and in the process extort more money than it earned and was due. Starting in 2012, as significant ‘out of the ground’ construction began and the first floors above the foundations were being constructed, CCA knew that it would be unable to build the project on time, on budget and in accordance with the plans and specifications,  because, among other things, it did not have and would not commit to the project the qualified workforce or sufficiently senior managers needed to meet its representations and obligations.

It added that CCA carried out its scheme by a series of knowingly and intentionally false representations, acts of extortion, material failures to disclose, fraudulent acts of concealment, outright sabotage, and lies to the Government of the Bahamas and the Project lender.”

BML Properties Ltd. is represented by Peter Sheridan of Glaser Weil Fink Howard Avchen & Shapiro LLP and Morrison Cohen LLP.

There  have been views expressed  by a segment of the  public that the project’s original developer, Sarkis Izmirlian, was unfairly removed by the Chinese state-owned financier and contractor, and poorly treated by the former Christie administration.