Brock Pierce, a crypto entrepreneur and former child star, says his friend stole his hotel in Puerto Rico “right away” and is suing him for damages, he told New York Post.
Chairman of the Bitcoin Foundation and Mighty ducks The alum, 43, told the newspaper that businessman Joseph Lipsey III “made up a fictitious contract” to “steal” the property, a gated resort on the island of Vieques, according to a civil suit he received Post.
“He knew the hotel was like my heart,” Pierce, also a former presidential candidate, told this newspaper. “I feel betrayed as much as possible.” Lipsey says the complaint is “baseless.”
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In 2021, the former child star reportedly paid $18.3 million for about an 80% stake in the resort, which was damaged by Hurricane Maria four years earlier, according to Post.
Then, last month, Lipsey gained control of the property by claiming Pierce defaulted on a loan from his company, according to the civil suit.
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Brock Pierce in ‘The Mighty Ducks’. Disney
Lipsey loaned Pierce $10 million in October so he could buy out the hotel’s minority partners, according to the lawsuit.
A month later, Lipsey foreclosed on the property, claiming his former friend had missed a deadline for the transaction, which Pierce denied Post.
“He says we didn’t send him a copy of the paperwork in time,” the former child star said.
According to Pierce, the loan agreement gave Lipsey the right to operate the holding company that controls the resort if Pierce defaulted, but ignored the 30-day legal process he was required to go through to transfer the property to himself.
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If his legal battle succeeds, Pierce wants to move forward with his plan for the hotel, opening it as soon as 2025, he told Post.
“Everyone is still working on renovating the hotel. But I don’t know for how much longer,” he told the newspaper, adding that “what Lipsey did is potentially fatal.”
Pierce is suing Lipsey to get the court to overturn the transfer, he said Post. He is also seeking $80 million in damages from his former friend, Bloomberg reported.
Talking to BloombergLipsey called Pierce’s allegations “baseless” and said the ownership transfer was completely legal.
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The estranged friends met in Puerto Rico, where Pierce has lived since 2017 and where Lipsey moved in 2021 with his family.
“His wife became friends with my mother before she died,” Pierce said Post. “Joseph came to me after she died and said I promised your mom I’d be there to help you.”
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education