To: StockDung who wrote (31126 ) 12/18/1998 7:56:00 PM From: Mr. Park Read Replies (3) | Respond to of 119973
Turbodyne Sues Asensio & Company for Fraud & Defamation FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Woodland Hills, CA - December 16, 1998 - Turbodyne Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: TRBD, EASDAQ: TRBD) announced today that it has filed a six count complaint against New York "short seller" Manuel P. Asensio and his Asensio & Company, Inc. ("Asensio") in Superior Court in and for the County of Los Angeles, California. Turbodyne's lawsuit charges Asensio with fraud, defamation and other violations for falsely claiming Turbodyne did not have any patents on new technology in emission reduction and did not possess any valuable technology. In fact, Turbodyne's breakthrough technology is protected by more than 30 granted and pending patents in the United States and internationally. The United States EPA has certified Turbodyne's Turbopacâ„¢ as part of an urban bus retrofit kit with Detroit Diesel Corporation. Under this program Turbodyne has manufactured its products and they have been and are continuing to be installed on urban buses throughout the United States. Turbodyne is represented in this matter by Mr. Marvin L. Rudnick of Rudnick & Kadish, Pasadena, California and Mr. Sheldon H. Lytton of Kelly, Lytton, Mintz & Vann, Los Angeles, California. Mr. Rudnick, formerly with the United States Department of Justice, Organized Crime and Racketeering Strike-Forces, is a well-known trial and racketeering lawyer. Mr. Rudnick has successfully prosecuted the Florida State Treasurer and Insurance Commissioner for bribery and conducted the investigation for the House Senate Investigating Committee that led to the successful prosecution of the Florida State Education Commissioner. Mr. Rudnick is continuing his investigation into other possible improprieties regarding Asensio's recent short-selling of Turbodyne stock. Mr. Lytton, formerly the Special Assistant Attorney General for the State of California Department of Justice and general counsel for the United States Marshals' Association, is a leading litigation and trial lawyer. Contacts: Mark White, Investor Relations, (800) 350-2031 Peter Kitzinski, General Manager Turbodyne Europe, 49-69-975-44-501 Peter Weichselbraun, Corporate Communications, (800) 566-1130 Except for the historical information contained in this news release, the matters discussed herein include forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Among the important factors that could cause actual results to differ from those indicated in the forward-looking statements are the availability and acceptance of the Turbodyne products; the impact of competitive products and pricing; the performance by the company under existing purchase contracts and the ability to obtain new contracts, the ability of the company to contain expenses, conditions within the global automotive market, general economic conditions and political changes both domestically and overseas and other factors detailed from time to time in the company's SEC reports, including its 1997 Form 20-F.