Kathy Ireland accuses former administration of stealing millions from family
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Kathy Ireland has accused her former team of misappropriating her multi-million dollar fortune, according to documents obtained by Fox News Digital.
The “Sports Illustrated” cover girl said her former business bosses sold out her trusts at an “unbelievable and unscrupulous rate” and allegedly stole millions from Ireland and her family.
Ireland’s attorney, Jill Basinger, exclusively told Fox News Digital that Kathy’s faith has not wavered since she discovered the alleged cheating inside her.
“Kathy is a strong person of faith and her trust in God has helped her and (her husband) Greg (Olsen) deal with betrayal and broken trust, and given her hope for the future,” Basinger said.
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Kathy Ireland sued her former business owners on Tuesday for alleged fraud, theft and willful falsehood. (Ron Galella)
Basinger, Head of Media, Entertainment and Sports for Stris & Maher LLP., added that “the Irish faith in God is stronger than anything else.”
“There is no betrayal that a person can do that can shake his foundation,” he continued. “But as it has been said, people cannot behave like this. And as a matter of human behavior. It is not right to treat someone like this. Kathy and Greg put all their trust in these people. Their reward was to be cheated.”
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Kathy Ireland and husband Greg Olsen say they were mentored by former managers Jason Winters and Erik Sterling. (Kathy Ireland Instagram)
In a lawsuit filed Tuesday in a Santa Barbara court, Ireland, 62 – who Forbes once estimated at $420 million for his pseudonym – said his family was targeted by Jason Winters and Erik Sterling, who allegedly led a fraudulent management scheme.
“People can’t behave like this. And it’s just a human issue. It’s not right to treat someone like this.”
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“More than thirty years ago, at just twenty-six years old, supermodel Kathy Ireland placed her faith — financial, professional, and personal — in two Hollywood figures, who promised to ‘take care of everything for her,'” the lawsuit said. “Kathy believed (and still believes) in values and honesty.
“During those years, Kathy was still building her career. She was newly married, planning to start a family. She believed in hard work. She believed in doing business with integrity. And, she believed in them, based on their promises to her. Sadly, that belief was misplaced. They lied to her, every time.”
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Ireland said Winters and Sterling told him he was “incredibly rich” and that the family “never needed to worry.”
Kathy Ireland is reportedly worth over $400 million. (Harry Langdon/Getty Images)
Kathy Ireland has accused Stephen Roseberry, former President and CMO at Kathy Ireland Worldwide, of fraud. (Greg Doherty)
Instead, the model said her former team “failed to create wealth and invest” as promised to their family, leaving Ireland and husband Greg Olsen with huge debts and forced to sell their family home.
“Kathy and Greg put their trust in these people. Their reward was being cheated.”
That’s when the couple tried to borrow money from their son to pay for the house when they realized they didn’t have any money and the defendants used their money, according to the documents.
“Kathy and Greg now know that there are no retirement accounts,” the lawsuit states. “There is no prudently managed investment to secure their future, as promised. No wealth secures their retirement and their children’s future, as they have been led to believe.
“Instead, because of the defendants’ misconduct, there was huge debt, misapplied loans, secret loans, and missing funds.”
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He believes “Defendants are liable to Plaintiffs for tens of millions of dollars in damages, if not more than $100 million, depending on the evidence at trial,” the documents state. “The defendants continue to hold the money they took and owed to the plaintiffs.”
The model, Olsen, and her mother, Barbara Ireland, joined former Kathy Ireland Worldwide staffers Stephen Roseberry, Jon Carasco, Nic Mendoza, and Brittany Duncan in a frog suit.
