Falconi fights to keep Honda dealership

Bill Gang and Richard N. Velotta

Tuesday, June 16, 1998 | 4:05 a.m.

A last minute bid by Falconi's Tropicana Honda to cling to its franchise amid an international bribery and corruption scandal that has put three Honda Corporation executives in prison has been only partially successful.

District Judge Stephen Huffaker, who already upheld American Honda Corp.'s termination of its franchise contract with the Las Vegas dealership, granted only a 60-day emergency postponement Monday to allow a final plea to the Nevada Supreme Court.

Angelo Falconi's attorney Roger Wirth must now ask the high court to grant an additional delay of Huffaker's decision if there is to be an appeal of the case.

American Honda attorney Steve Morris said at Monday's hearing that a Supreme Court appeal would let "a corrupt dealership continue to enjoy the profits" by staying in operation for the two to three years it would take the justices to decide the case.

"It's time to put an end to this ... sordid, disgusting story about Honda's relationship with Falconi," Morris said.

Wirth argued that without an order delaying enforcement of Huffaker's decision, the dealership would go to someone else and couldn't be returned even if Falconi wins his appeal.

The thought of an appeal-created delay bothered Huffaker, who said the local dealer simply would be "stalling the inevitable foreclosure when there was no reasonable chance of prevailing on appeal."

"Three officials are in prison and where is Falconi? Still doing business," Huffaker fumed. "Is that the right thing? I don't think so."

"I don't think that under the the facts of the case (Tropicana Honda) should remain in business. I don't think this case should be dragged out."

Huffaker's decision upheld the ruling of an administrative law judge that American Honda can terminate its contract with Tropicana Honda because of the nationwide kickback scheme.

American Honda has sought termination of the relationship since the middle of last year after 18 former American Honda managers were convicted of fraud in a nationwide scheme against the car manufacturer.

Two of the 18 managers implicated Falconi in the kickback scheme which, Morris said, prompted Falconi to tell the FBI everything he knew.

Morris said Falconi paid more than $1 million in bribes through a shell corporation since the dealership began in the 1980s.

"Bribes paid by this man resulted in the imprisonment of three Honda executives," he said.

American Honda has said that if Huffaker's decision is upheld, it would move quickly to form a new Honda dealership in Las Vegas and would retain as many of the Falconi employees as possible.

The court decision concluded that kickbacks paid by Falconi violated federal and state law as well as the dealership agreement with American Honda and the manufacturer's conflict-of-interest policies.

Two former Honda managers, James Cardiges and Robert Rivers, pleaded guilty to racketeering and mail fraud and later testified against the others.

Cardiges and Rivers implicated Angelo Falconi in the kickback scheme.

Falconi contends he was victimized by Cardiges, formerly senior vice president of sales for American Honda, and Rivers, the company's former Western region manager.