The employees, executives and partners of a shipbuilding company that allegedly bilked its workers and creditors out of more than $400,000 have a wide range of other legal woes, court records show.

On Dec. 29, the U.S. Department of Labor sued Direct Marine Services of Houma and 10 of its employees for failing to pay its workers in accordance with the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. At least eight other lawsuits have been filed against the company in Terrebonne court for unpaid bills.

There’s a tax lien, or a claim on Direct Marine assets, from the Louisiana Workforce Commission for $222.15. And there’s also a suit from Coastal Electric Supply, a company that supplied building materials for a tow boat. The suit asks that the boat be seized because Coastal claims Direct owes $13,012 in unpaid bills.

Workers say that tow boat, called Hull 101, disappeared from the yard the day after 28 of them were laid off in early November.

Repeated attempts to contact company officers Raul Hurtado, Pearl Young and Sandra Hess about the charges were not successful.

On Nov. 2, Wallace “Lou” Parker, the company’s vice president of operations, was arrested for allegedly impersonating an officer and illegal-weapons charges. The company called police after firing Parker for threatening employees, Houma Police Chief Todd Duplantis said at the time. Management was concerned he might try to use guns he kept in his office, including a machine gun and firearms with obliterated serial numbers, records state.

Parker identified himself as an officer, smelled of alcohol and carried a .380-caliber handgun, police said.
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