Conviction, restraining order leave customers in the lurch

MERRIMACK – Albert Flores says he has been made “a victim” by his estranged wife, who has left him with bank accounts in the red, a house on the brink of foreclosure and a business that’s months behind on rent.

“I am totally suffering here,” Flores said in a telephone interview Thursday. “It’s overwhelming. I feel like crawling under a rock, because she has devastated my whole life.”

Meredith Moore-Flores, 31, was sentenced earlier last week to one to five years in state prison after she pleaded guilty to stealing $62,000 from a former employer in Londonderry.

The couple owns Always New 2 You, a consignment shop on 360 Daniel Webster Highway, in what’s commonly known as the old Shaw’s plaza.

But the store has been closed since Moore-Flores’ conviction last week. A sign on the door refers to a “family emergency,” and its voice-mail box was full as of Thursday.

Since then, some of the store’s 2,500 consigners have become upset and want to retrieve their items.

“MR. FLORES OPEN THE DOORS SO I CAN GET MY STUFF AND OTHER PEOPLE CAN TOO!!!!” wrote a person identified as “exshopper” on The Telegraph’s Web site.

Flores acknowledged that consigners might be distressed, and promised to “do the best I can for the consigners that have been misled by her.”

“I will open the doors, just not right now,” Flores said. “Probably sometime next week. I will do whatever I can to give the customers back everything they brought. … I can’t just go in there and open doors and let people grab everything. I don’t know what’s what.”

Flores said Thursday his main concern for the moment is protecting his family; he has four young children.

Flores said the consignment shop was “my dream,” and that he “opened it with all the right intentions” this time last year.

But things began to unravel last spring, Flores said. That’s when he found out about the theft charges levied against his wife. Insight Technology accused her of falsifying documents for reimbursement.

Flores filed for divorce in May.

The following month, he was arrested after Moore-Flores accused him of simple assault – grabbing her arm and pushing her. But Flores said that incident was a “whole fabrication.” A judge later found him not guilty based on a lack of credible witnesses, according to police.

Moore-Flores then filed a restraining order against him, which temporarily transferred the business into her custody, Flores said.

He hasn’t been near the store since that order, made in June.

During his mandated absence from the store during the summer and fall, Flores said he believes his estranged wife “took all the income and used it for herself. For what? I have no idea.”

According to his examination of account records, Flores said the business is four months behind on rent and has “unpaid bills beyond my belief.”

The MEG Cos., which manages the plaza property for Apple Development Limited Partnership in Massachusetts, initiated an eviction process on Oct. 30 because of “severe delinquency on rent payments,” said Mike Charron, MEG’s director of property management.

He said Always New 2 You is “at least” three months behind. Moore-Flores had been in touch with MEG’s attorney to try to negotiate a deal, Charron said.

The eviction notice states how much the store owes and a date by which the owners need to pay, leave or negotiate some kind of payment plan, Charron said. The next step would be in court.

Flores said he has contacted the lawyer who oversaw the original lease agreement in hopes of getting a clearer picture of his options.

He hopes to restructure a new lease agreement with the property management company, but as of Thursday, he didn’t know what would happen.

“It’s not something I can do overnight,” Flores said. “To be honest, I don’t know if I will be able to reopen again. I don’t think I can bounce back. … She’s left me in such a hole, I might have to file for bankruptcy.

“I have nothing. All I have is debt.”

To the folks who are concerned about their personal property, Flores said, “All I’m asking is to give me some time. I will do right by whoever was consigning there, to the best of my ability.”

Merrimack Police say they’re treating the situation as a civil issue, and officers responded to one complaint last week regarding property inside the store, said Capt. Mike Dudash.

Officers in touch with Flores determined “he needs time to straighten out his matters before we can get involved,” Dudash said.

“We have to decipher who represents what, and at the same time, give Flores the benefit of the doubt that he will make things right,” Dudash said.

An officer has been assigned to track complaints about the business.

If people call the department looking for assistance, Dudash said, “We would direct them to contact Mr. Flores and try and work out the matter first. If they don’t get any satisfaction, and they think it’s suspicious or criminal in nature, feel free to go to the Merrimack Police Department and we’ll take the complaint and look into it from there.”

Flores said eventually, he would like to reopen the store under new management and get a fresh start.

Charron said that’s what MEG would like to see, too.

“Our hope is that they’ll be able to make acceptable arrangements to pay what they owe and continue to do business there,” Charron said.

“We’d like to keep them there. We think it’s a benefit to the center and to the community, but obviously we can’t let them stay forever without paying, either.”

Karen Lovett can be reached at 594-6402 or klovett@nashuatelegraph.com.