Torgersen

"What everyone knew was that most of the values in the fisheries were in the company American Capital Group Inc. It was here Møgster and Torgersen poured their money, but the bay and both ends were owned by Røkke himself with his 62.5 percent. The Norwegian partners together had just half of Røkke (31.25 percent), while Carl Mundt and David A. Herrick owned respectively five and one percent."

"Røkke was bold enough to continue using American Seafoods as his own money bin, without caring about the partners. In total, he took out over 50 million kroner. Then Møgster and Torgersen found a loophole: For every dollar Røkke took out for himself, they put 50 cents into a separate account. Thus, they had also secured a straw into the cash register."

"It ended with an attempt at a palace coup, where Møgster and Torgersen misjudged the situation. The partners had money in reserve, but they thought they could "dry out" Kjell Inge Røkke by not providing new capital. In secret, they intended to run American Seafoods into the ground, force their partner out, and take over the ruins from the banks afterward. So, Møgster and Torgersen tightened their purse strings and procrastinated as much as they could."

"Røkke was no different: Each ship was owned by one company. It looked simple on paper, but when one wanted to know who was behind the company, one came up short. For a spiderweb quickly formed that swarmed with owners. This suited Kjell Inge Røkke like a glove since he was almost the only one who had a complete overview. But more importantly, the network was constructed in such a way that Kjell Inge Røkke effectively held all the power. The problem was that Kjell Inge Røkke saw all the money as his own money bin, and the businesses as a gigantic sausage stand where he could control everything alone. It had to go wrong because some of the partners were interested in fishing, while others only thought about real estate. And they immediately went to war with each other when Røkke manipulated the money between the companies. The first "skirmishes" between the partners already came in 1989, when Kjell Inge Røkke, without asking anyone, suddenly withdrew several million kroner – as an "honorarium" because he had the idea of "American Empress". When Torgersen discovered the withdrawal, he became furious. But Røkke told him to shut his mouth: "I have the majority and I do what I want.""

"Also at the partner meetings, it started to blow up, and the mood went from gusty to stormy when Røkke suggested that they should still invest millions in real estate in Norway. That was the last thing Møgster and Torgersen wanted. On the contrary, they wanted to "stand it off" - to lie low until the waters became calmer. Røkke refused to listen to this side and completely ran over the partners. With clever juggling, he moved huge amounts and freed up capital for his raids in Norway. Møgster and Torgersen became furious when they discovered what was happening. They did not see the opportunities the real estate market in Norway offered and did not want to invest money in buildings in Molde and Nydalen at all."

"Røkke had both the bay and the ends and played ruthlessly. Møgster and Torgersen experienced what it meant to defy him. With support from Mundt and the other partners, Røkke held the power – and he used it hard. The end result was that Møgster and Torgersen received 5.5 million dollars for their bare third-party share of the company, which valued the entire company at 123 million kroner. It was a disgraceful price for a company that was likely worth ten times that. Norwegian tax authorities were alarmed when the sum appeared in the tax returns. They suspected that black money had been paid under the table and initiated an investigation. But it led to nothing, as the incredibly low purchase price was correct."