U.S. Labor Department sues former executive of Florida mortuary and transportation company to recover 401(k) funds

Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.

Atlanta – The U.S. Department of Labor has sued Timothy Steinkamp, a corporate officer of defunct Broward Removal Services and Broward Trade Services Inc. in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, for violating the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) when he failed to remit employee contributions owed to the company’s 401(k) plan.

“This money belongs to the employees to pay for their future retirement, and it is unacceptable for a corporate executive to divert plan funds to benefit the company sponsoring the plan,” said Rebecca Marshall, director of the Atlanta Regional Office of the department’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), which investigated this case.

The suit alleges that Steinkamp withheld $19,189 from employees’ salaries between January 2005 and April 2006, but failed to segregate the funds from those of the former company, and did not forward the money to the plan. The company also allegedly withheld $4,783 in participant loan repayments to the plan, failed to segregate that money from the company’s general assets and did not forward it to the plan. The Labor Department seeks to recover assets owed to the plan plus earnings the funds would have received if the assets had been prudently managed.

In addition, the suit seeks to remove the defendant as a plan fiduciary, bar him from serving as fiduciary of any ERISA-covered plan, and appoint a successor fiduciary to receive any funds recovered and distribute any proceeds to the seven participants.

Broward Removal Services and Broward Trade Services Inc. held contracts with Broward, Miami-Dade, Palm Beach and several additional counties in central Florida to pick up and transport the deceased. The company also provided transportation and mortuary services for funeral homes.

Employers and workers can reach EBSA’s Atlanta Regional Office at 404.302.3900 or toll-free at 866.444.3272 for help with problems relating to private sector retirement and health plans. In fiscal year 2007, EBSA achieved monetary results of $1.5 billion related to pension, 401(k), health and other benefits for millions of American workers and their families.

Chao v. Timothy L. Steinkamp
(Civil Action File Number: 08-cv-61215-KMM)

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Archived News Release — Caution: Information may be out of date.