REIDSVILLE, N.C. — Nearly 30 members of American Partners Federal Credit Union claimed to have lost $3 million of their retirement savings through an investment advisor working at the credit union and 14 have filed a lawsuit against both to recover their money.

The 14 plaintiffs invested $1.3 million of their personal retirement savings through David Morgan, an investment advisor with Mariner Financial, who was provided office space and administrative assistance by American Partners, according to Brown v. American Partners FCU NO. COA06-392 filed with the North Carolina Court of Appeals on June 5.

Starting in the late 1990s, the investments "performed satisfactorily" for a period of time with plaintiffs receiving monthly distribution checks but the checks eventually ceased arriving. The plaintiffs claim that when they asked about the status of the investments, both American Partners and Morgan assured them that the principal was intact, and the monthly distributions would resume shortly. In late 2003, the plaintiffs learned that Morgan was filing for bankruptcy and the company in which their money had been invested, Evergreen, Ltd., had filed for bankruptcy in January 2001.