The managing director's dog breaching biosecurity on an organic chicken farm and getting poisoned, bullying, theft of a crocodile skin and misuse of corporate credit cards. These are just some of the allegations made during a failed attempt to save a taxpayer-funded company part-owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp and which collapsed owing $100 million, according to documents sighted by Fairfax Media.
The revelations about the collapse of RM Williams Agricultural Holdings (RMWAH) come as angry shareholders express concern about governance issues at the company and the "awful" loss of their large investments.
Earlier this week, Fairfax Media revealed how shortly before the carbon farming company's demise, the board, chaired by former News Corp director Ken Cowley, was engulfed in a row over an allegedly damaging secret shareholding held by managing director David Pearse.
The share structure was believed to have discouraged potential investors and were raised by the company when it sought to terminate Mr Pearse's employment.
An internal email from the company's board in 2012 reveals Mr Pearse was also put on notice over allegations relating to a raft of concerns that included his dog breaching biosecurity on the company's organic chicken farm and then getting poised by a rat bait, use of the company credit card for personal items and "unacceptable behaviour" towards a company accountant among others.
Mr Pearse denied any impropriety this week. ''There is nothing to discuss. This has all been addressed. It was all settled and all proven to have no consequences."
He left the company in late 2012 after being confronted with the allegations but took action for wrongful dismissal and was awarded a $50,000 settlement.
A major shareholder in the company, which sued Mr Pearse over the shareholdings, received a "claim settlement" from him of $200,000 worth of shares.
Disgruntled shareholders have lashed out at the company's performance. Property developer Piers Dawson-Damer, a big investor, said resistance to governance reform had been an issue.
"There was real resistance to governance reform from some quarters including to changing the equity structure when in mid-2012 a number of shareholders sought to implement a restructure in the face of advice from the company’s corporate advisers that changes were necessary to successfully engage with potential new equity investors,'' said Mr Dawson-Damer, whose company had millions tied up in RMWAH.
"There were divergent views held, by at least among senior management, about the value of group assets, the direction of the company and priorities for capital investment.''
Another concerned investor who spoke out was US-based businessman Alan Gayer, who ended up owning shares after RMWAH bought the organic chicken farming business he established.
"We were quite disappointed with the performance of RM Williams Agricultural Holdings,'' he said. "We watched it go through various things and it became clear that guidance on this [to the shareholders] was not totally reliable and we were struck that various family members kept showing up in management roles and there were other things that were awkward, like the share structure.
"There was this odd situation with the shares that was quite mysterious as first but ultimately it became clear that they [Cowley and Pearse] each held one share and that entitled them to effectively avoid dilution.
"They were forever able to avoid dilution by holding on to the right to convert. My understanding was that finally they were forced to convert at one of the later stages but that may have been when the company was too far gone.
"We did get various communications. It became clear that once potential new investors understood the role of those class-A shares, no rational investor would put money in under those terms.
"I never saw anything that resembled a business plan and for that matter even on the cattle side. There may have been some in the company plans but no viable business plan ever got out to the shareholder at my level.''
