1 week ago
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Wow. It sounds like the “King of Instagram” may have been the victim of a coup d’etat?
Dan Bilzerian has sued his own father, arguing he was pushed out of the company he founded and that they continued to use his likeness afterward. That company is Ignite, which sells spirits, vape pens, apparel, and lots more. Dan founded it in 2017 and is the majority shareholder, but the lawsuit states he was its “nominal CEO” and not directly involved in its operations.
According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the social media star filed court papers on Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas against Paul Bilzerian, a former Wall Street investor. Wait, Dan grew up with money and isn’t a self-made man? Shocker….. He also named Ignite International Brands Ltd.; former Ignite CEO Scott Rohleder; and Ignite’s new chief Rupy Dhadwar in the suit. Dan claims they fired him as top executive last year. In the papers, Dan alleges Paul and Scott also “purported to remove” him as chairman of Ignite months later without the necessary approvals.
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The Las Vegas mainstay, who is no stranger to controversy or legal drama of his own, went on to pursue other business opportunities — but the defendants allegedly “engaged in a smear campaign” against him, telling suppliers and distributors that he was legally prevented from competing with Ignite. Damn!
So, why was he axed in the first place?? The complaint claims he had an argument with other shareholders over the company’s product quality and leadership. He was then fired, but the company kept exploiting his “recognizable likeness for their own benefit while tarnishing his name and reputation on the backdrop of their criminal acts.”
Wait, what?!
You read that right! CRIMINAL ACTS! Fighting back, Dan claims Paul and Scott “are criminals” who were recently indicted by a federal grand jury. Rupy’s main role is to carry out their orders, according to the lawsuit.
And it’s true there’s a complicated backstory here. Per the Review-Journal, Paul was convicted of securities fraud in 1989, for which he served time. He then moved to St. Kitts and was just indicted last month in U.S. federal court on charges including wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the United States. OMG!
Federal prosecutors claimed he “funneled” money through his shell companies to Ignite — all while failing to pay US securities regulators judgments that now surpass $180 million! Scott and Ignite were also charged in the case, but Dan was not. That said, the professional poker player has benefited from his father’s wealth, claiming he had a trust fund that was worth nearly $100 million. Court records show an entity linked to his father once loaned nearly $4 million to a now-bankrupt holding company owned by Dan. Despite this, he wasn’t accused of any wrongdoing in this legal situation.
Per the latest suit, once they were charged, Scott resigned as CEO and appointed Rupy. Dan is now seeking $50 million in damages, per his lawyer Jakub Medrala told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Wowza. This sure is a messy situation!
Our question is… did Dan really not have anything to do with the money funneling scheme like he says? He never got charged, but if he did have knowledge, surely a public lawsuit would dig that evidence up, right? Hmm…
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[Image via MEGA/WENN]
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