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Entrepreneur and reality TV star Kimora Lee Simmons is still living in the US$25 million (approx RM97.7 million) Beverly Hills mansion that was bought by her estranged husband, Tim Leissner, using money he stole from 1MDB.
According to NY Post, Simmons has not made a single mortgage or rent payments during the five years she was living at 25 Beverly Park Circle and is refusing to vacate the house.
She still films her reality show “Kimora: Back in the Fab Lane” at the said mansion, showing off her extensive luxury goods collection at the seven-bedroom estate.
It’s said Leissner, a Former Goldman Sachs partner, bought that property in Beverly Hills with stolen 1MDB money in 2017.
The fact that Leissner and Simmons did not have to forfeit the mansion is considered unusual. Other real estate assets that were bought with stolen 1MDB money such as Jho Low’s New York and LA properties, and the condo at Columbus Circle have been seized.
Leissner also bought a US$10 million (approx RM39.08 million) home in London for former Astro CEO Datuk Rohana Rozhan, with whom he was having an affair. He claimed she threatened to reveal their affair if he didn’t buy her a home. She turned over the property to the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) in 2023.
Celebrities who were gifted pricey assets bought with stolen 1MDB money were also asked by the US government to return them. For example, Leonardo DiCaprio returned a Picasso and Basquiat worth a combined US$12.2 million (approx RM47.68 million) and Marlon Brando’s Oscar, worth US$600,000 (approx RM2.34 million) that were gifted to him by Low with 1MDB money.
The mansion is in the center of a legal dispute
Simmons’s home is now in the middle of a messy legal dispute and it may be tough for Malaysia to demand it back.
For starters, Leissner claimed in court that he sold his assets to Newland, a Hong Kong-based company. It’s believed Newland may be a front company.
In November 2020, Leissner’s LLC, Keyway Pride, which was held by Newland, sold the Beverly Hills property to billionaire brothers and real estate moguls David and Simon Reuben after he defaulted on interest payments for a US$12 million (approx RM46.9 million) mortgage taken out to fund his “living expenses.”
As part of the deal, Leissner and Simmons were to pay US$67,000 (approx RM261,836) a month to continue living in the property.
However, Simmons has lived there since November 2020 without paying a dime.
Simmons claimed the property was sold without her consent, alleging that her signature on a Keyway resolution to authorise the sale and leaseback was procured through misrepresentation and abuse of trust by Leissner. She filed the complaint in January 2021, two months after the home was sold to the Reuben brothers.
In the lawsuit, she claimed the Reuben brothers illegally bought the Beverly Hills home.
Despite the legal drama surrounding her, she continues filming her show at the property but makes no mention of the legal troubles in front of the camera.
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