Played A Pawn

As CFO for Gene Reed Enterprises, Charleston, SC I was involved in hiring the managers of the dealerships.  Little did I know that hiring Paul Whatley would lead to my demise.  Gene Reed hired Paul Whatley as General Manager of Gene Reed Toyota in 2009 and agreed to sell Paul an interest in the dealership in the future if he improved the performance.  Eventually, Paul was offered an agreement in 2010.  A stock purchase agreement was prepared by Mr. Reed's attorneys and I shared it with Paul in 2010.  We discussed and went through it several times but it was not to his liking.  I asked him to discuss with his attorney and get back with us about his proposed changes.  We had numerous conversations about the agreement but he never brought any changes for discussion.  In 2011 we were approached about selling the Toyota and Lexus dealerships located in the Charleston area.  Agreements were reached and the dealerships were sold.  Paul was not happy but he never signed the agreements.  In June he filed a lawsuit against Gene Reed and me for not getting to buy the Toyota Dealership.  The lawsuit was filed in Orangeburg, SC so he could take advantage of his attorneys location and favorable judges.  The lawsuit was full of false accusations and complete lies.  I had all of my documentation to refute all of the fabrications.  I was set up as the pawn in a battle between these two wealthy individuals.  Reed questioned me daily about the facts harassing me at home and tried to find me at fault but never could.  Paul claimed to have a document that Reed had signed agreeing to sell him the dealership.  Paul had Mr. Reed in a drunken state on one of their Toyota trips and must have taken advantage of the situation to get some paper signed.  Mr. Reed finally agreed to settle for millions after I no longer worked for him and I was forced to sign off on the agreement.  Harassed daily for months at work and at home, all because Reed did something stupid and Whatley did not get his way.  Used as a pawn and what I went through broke me mentally.  I have lost everything including my job, my family and my own dignity. It's personal!