White County trucking company files for bankruptcy
Subscriber Benefit
As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe Now
APL Cargo Inc., a logistics company headquartered in the White County town of Wolcott, is seeking Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
The company, led by President Stefan Trifan, made its filing May 31 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Indiana.
APL Cargo did not provide a reason for filing for bankruptcy. The petition says the company has between 200-999 creditors, as well as assets and liabilities both between $1 million and $10 million.
APL Cargo provides transportation services for a variety of cargo, including general freight, building materials, fresh produce, meat, and paper products, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. The company has 122 drivers in its employ, the FMCSA’s website says.
Among the creditors to which the company owes the most are US Truck & Trailer Repair Co. in West Lafayette at $1.4 million, SOS Capital II LLC at $541,000, Dynasty Capital at $350,000, and JRG Funding LLC at $342,000.
APL Cargo did not immediately respond to a request for more information from Inside INdiana Business.
Another Wolcott-based company, Indy National Leasing, also filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on May 31. Trifan is listed as the company’s sole member, and the petition says the company has up to $50,000 in assets and $10 million to $50 million in liabilities.
Wolcott is located about 85 miles northwest of Indianapolis.
The filings come more than a year after a former APL driver filed a class-action lawsuit against both companies alleging that APL “failed to pay him and other drivers all the wages they were entitled to receive, in violation of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act.”
The suit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, claims that APL misclassified the plaintiff and other lease purchase drivers as independent contractors rather than employees.
In April, Magistrate Judge John Martin approved a motion to stay the case until July 31 as the parties said “they are making efforts to reach a global settlement in this case on behalf of the entire class.”