Brad Pitt has been accused of hiding “embezzled assets” in his ongoing legal battle over a French winery he bought during his marriage to ex-wife Angelina Jolie. The couple, who bought Chateau Miraval in 2008 with plans to turn it into a business for their children, have been embroiled in a bitter court battle through 2022.
The dispute centers around the ownership of the winery and its associated properties, each of which used their respective investment companies – Pitts Mondo Bongo LLC and Jolies Nouvelle LLC – to purchase Miraval’s parent company Quimicum.
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Pitt accused of hiding ’embezzled’ assets
In 2021, Jolie informed Pitt via email that she wanted to exit the business, prompting him and his team to negotiate the purchase of her shares in Miraval. They offered $54.4 million, but the deal fell through. Instead, Jolie sold Novell, the company that held her shares in Miraval, to the Stoli Group, controlled by Russian billionaire Yuri Sheffler, for $64 million. Pitt’s lawsuit claims that Jolie violated a prior agreement that prohibited her from selling her shares to a third party without mutual consent.
However, Jolie denies all allegations of any wrongdoing in the ongoing legal dispute. Novell, the company that held its shares, sued Pitt for $250 million, accusing him of driving them out of business and treating Miraval as his “personal fiefdom”. In response, Pitt accused Stoli, the company that bought Jolie’s shares, of attempting a hostile takeover.
In May, a second counterclaim with similar claims was filed by Stoli’s subsidiary, Tenute del Mondo. Tenuit alleges that Pitt and his company, Mondo Bongo, “embezzled assets” by secretly transferring Miraval assets to “vanity projects” in France that lacked a legitimate “business purpose,” according to InTouch Weekly. Was reported by.
The Tenute lawsuit reads, “[Brad] Chateau Miraval’s funds and properties were spent on his personal expenses and transferred to his other business ventures rather than as dividends and loan payments, which would flow through Quimicum to Mondo Bongo and Nouvel and eventually back. [Brad] And [Angelina]It further reads, “That unlawful conduct continued, and intensified, thereafter [Angelina] Novell was sold to Tenute, the wine-making arm of the international beverage company, Stoli Group.
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The lawsuit accuses Pitt of…
Pitt had previously argued that the case should be heard overseas rather than as part of the California lawsuit. However, Tenute del Mondo is now requesting that the court proceed with the lawsuit against Pitt, insisting that it should continue despite their objections and not be dismissed or transferred to another jurisdiction. .
The company’s lawyer said, “Tenute adequately alleges that [Brad]California resident, instructed the CEO of Chateau Miraval in California to hide the embezzled assets. The lawyer added, “Tenute requests that neither [Brad] Nor did the CEO of Chateau Miraval have the authority to divert the property to side businesses or personal expenses. Tenute also pleads criminal intent because [Brad and his company] “Deliberately concealed its misappropriation.”
Tenute claimed that Novell had loaned Miraval $20 million, with the understanding that the loan would be repaid if the business became profitable. The lawyer said, “Tenute is accused of [Brad] And Mondo Bongo has misused millions of dollars of Chateau Miraval funds that should have been distributed to Tenute to his side business, Miraval Studios, in which he has a 40% interest, but in which Tenute only has a 5% interest.
The company alleged that the Fight Club actor’s team hid the expenses from Jolie and that she “concealed or assisted in concealing the embezzlement because she sent a message.” [Brad’s business partner] She was instructed ‘not to send the AJ report now because she is trying to buy her shares,’ the company argued.[Brad’s] message to [Brad’s business partner] There was at least an initial function to conceal or assist in the concealment of embezzlement.
Tenute alleges that when Jolie’s representatives questioned the Chateau Miraval CEO about approving an expense that appeared to benefit only Pitt, the CEO reportedly responded, “What should I do? He’s my boss.” Tenute argues that this response, along with other evidence, supports their claim and provides sufficient grounds to pursue their counterclaim in court.
