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Cohn questioned Maxfield about the status of his 1981
investment when no profits were forthcoming. Cohn recalled that
the progress reports he had seen "did not look great and scared *
* * [him] a little bit." Maxfield's "responses were not euphoric
but good enough [for Cohn] to invest again in 1982." Even though
he had yet to receive any distributions from Empire, Cohn
invested in Foam in 1982. Cohn testified that Maxfield spoke
positively about his visit to PI that year. Cohn recalled that
"much further investigation" had been undertaken and that
"Explanations were given as to why the [projected economic]
return [for Empire] had not come forth." Other than perhaps
Maxfield's visit to PI, however, Cohn did not elaborate upon what
"further investigation" had been done. The explanation he
received with respect to Empire's lack of economic return was
that "the market was weak at that--for those few months".
Cohn thought that the plastics recycling business "was just
slow" until he read an article in the Wall Street Journal
reporting that "there was an injunction * * * restraining Mr.
Roberts from pushing these things." At that point Cohn recalled
that discussions at Sann & Howe "focused on the fact that we had
dealt with a promoter who had not--that we had been sold a bill
of goods is the best way I can put it." Cohn recalled that there
was a feeling that the investment did not produce as projected,
"And personally, you know, how could I or how could we be so
stupid as to--and then we would go through what--the recollection
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