MINNEAPOLIS, July 29, 2008 (LAWFUEL) — Charles H. Johnson &
Associates announces that a class action has been commenced against
SemGroup Energy Partners, L.P. (“SemGroup”) (Nasdaq:SGLP), and certain
affiliated parties, in the United States District Court for the
Southern District of New York on behalf of investors in SemGroup on the
February 13, 2008 secondary offering.
Plaintiff alleges that the Prospectus for the secondary offering
misrepresented the financial strength of SemGroup’s Parent (SemGroup,
L.P.) and failed to disclose that the Parent had engaged in risky
hedging strategies that presented a material risk of default and
bankruptcy. Because SemGroup’s business operations were heavily
dependent on its Parent, the true facts concerning the Parent’s
financial condition were material to a reasonable investor’s decision
to purchase units from the secondary offering. The facts were first
disclosed to investors on Thursday, July 17, 2008, when SemGroup
revealed that because of its hedging strategies, the Parent was at risk
for filing for bankruptcy. The Parent and its affiliated companies
subsequently filed for bankruptcy on Monday, July 21, 2008. As a result
of the July 17, 2008 disclosures and subsequent bankruptcy filing,
SemGroup’s units, which closed on Wednesday, July 16, 2008 at $22.80
per unit, plummeted to close on Wednesday, July 23, 2008 at $8.00 per
unit. Documents filed on behalf of the Parent in Bankruptcy Court
revealed that SemGroup began experiencing financial distress in 2007
and early 2008, prior to the secondary offering. The Prospectus failed
to disclose that the Parent was suffering from liquidity problems, or
that it was engaged in highly risky crude oil hedge transactions that
affected its ability to continue as a going concern.
If you are a member of the class, you may, no later than September 19,
2008, request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff of the
class. Your ability to share in any recovery is not affected by the
decision whether or not to seek appointment as a lead plaintiff.
