NEWSBrad Pitt Claims Angelina Jolie Sold Half Of Her Shares Of Miraval Winery To Russian Oligarch Behind His Back, Actor Claims His Ex 'Sought To Inflict' Pain On Him
Jun. 6 2022, Published 3:04 p.m. ET
The battle of the exes continues: Brad Pitt has accused his ex wife Angelina Jolie of trying to hurt him by selling her stake in their French vineyard to a Russian oligarch, who has "poisonous intentions," documents obtained by the Daily Mail revealed.
The actress, 47, sold her half of the Chateau Miraval company to Tenute del Mondo, which is owned by Russian oligarch Yuri Shefler and part of Stoli Group, in 2021, the outlet reported.
Having made "desperate attempts to disassociate himself from the Putin regime, the Stoli brand is now a massive international liability," the papers read, referring to Vladimir Putin's recent attack on Ukraine. "Stolichnaya has been the object of boycotts throughout the world."
"The US Treasury Department designated Shefler as an 'oligarch in the Russian Federation' in an unclassified report to Congress made pursuant to the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act of 2017," the docs, which were filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court on June 3, continued.
The couple, who split in 2016, have been fighting over the French chateau, which is where they got married in 2014. Pitt claimed that being in the wine business has become a "passion" of his.
In October 2021, Jolie "purported to sell her interest to Tenute del Mondo, a hostile third-party competitor bent on taking control of Miraval," the papers, which were filed by the dad-of-six's attorney, claim.
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"Jolie pursued and then consummated the purported sale in secret, purposely keeping Pitt in the dark, and knowingly violating Pitt's contractual rights," the papers read. "By doing so, Jolie sought to seize profits she had not earned and returns on an investment she did not make. Also through the purported sale, Jolie sought to inflict harm on Pitt. Jolie knew and intended that Shefler and his affiliates would try to control the business Pitt had built and to undermine Pitt's investment in Miraval."
"Since claiming to acquire Jolie's interest in Miraval, Shefler has launched a hostile takeover of the wine business, destabilizing Miraval's operations and seeking access to Miraval's confidential and proprietary information for the benefit of his competing enterprise," the papers allege. "At the same time, Miraval's association with Shefler — who has gained notoriety through cutthroat business tactics and dubious professional associations — jeopardizes the reputation of the brand Pitt so carefully built. All of this is the direct result of Jolie's unlawful and tortious conduct. In violation of the parties' agreement, Jolie has sought to force Pitt into partnership with a stranger, and worse yet, a stranger with poisonous associations and intentions."
The two have not been on good terms for quite some time, and their custody agreement has yet to be worked out. “It’s very clear to him that Angie has gone out of her way to delay and stall the process,” an insider told Us Weekly of the handsome hunk. “All he can do is work with his legal team and file the paperwork whilst responding to her claims. Month after month goes by with one piece of red tape after another, endless jumping through hoops and bickering between their lawyers with no resolution."
