WILMINGTON, Del. — A judge has approved a bankruptcy loan of $20 million from one of David Tepper's companies to another in order to finance a failed project.
On Friday, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Karen Owens approved the financing loan that will allow DT Sports Holding LLC to loan the money to GT Real Estate, according to court documents.
In June, York County officials filed a lawsuit this week against several of Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper's companies and the city of Rock Hill over the team's now-dead training facility, calling it a "failed vanity project."
The lawsuit alleges that Appaloosa Management, LP, DT Sports Holding, LLC, and Tepper Sports Holding Inc. misappropriated $21 million of public funding on the failed project. The suit states the money was specifically allocated for road expansion related to the project but that "rather than covering the ballooning project budget themselves, the Tepper defendants took money from York County and its taxpayers."
York County also issued a statement in June saying it expected to receive that $21 million plus interest, saying it was designated for the expansion of Mt. Gallant Road.
The lawsuit also blames the city of Rock Hill for failing to issue the required bonds, leading to the project's failure. The suit states this led to Tepper and Rock Hill pointing fingers over whose fault it was, harming York County and its taxpayers.