Sour grapes! Brad Pitt claims 'vindictive' Angelina Jolie secretly plotted to sell off her share of his beloved French vineyard Miraval to 'Russian oligarch' to 'severely damage' him and 'enrich herself' as payback for bitter custody battle

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Published on Wednesday, 30 November -0001 00:00

Written by Daily mail

          Blindsided Brad Pitt learned that ex-wife Angelina Jolie had sold half of their celebrated French vineyard to a 'Russian oligarch' from a press release, DailyMail.com can exclusively reveal. The former couple had a 'mutual and binding commitment' to the $160 million Chateau Miraval business and both agreed never to sell their share without the other's permission. But stunned Pitt, 59, discovered his ex-wife had 'secretly' sold her 50 percent stake when a 2021 press release announced that he had new business partners, according to the actor's lawyers. Worse still, the buyer was part of a 'Russia-affiliated' vodka conglomerate headed by a billionaire oligarch who would use the Hollywood connection to launder his reputation, a new filing alleges. 'As will be demonstrated at trial, Jolie's actions were unlawful, severely and intentionally damaging Pitt and unjustly enriching herself,' states the document, filed in LA Superior Court and obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com.Pitt and UN human rights activist Jolie, 47, split in 2016 but are still sorting out their labyrinthine financial affairs and custody arrangements to this day. The latest skirmish began as a protracted business dispute over the Chateau Miraval, a 35-room estate and vineyard they jointly acquired for $60 million in 2011 and the setting for their wedding three years later. Just as the fizz went out of their A-list marriage, this latest dust up has steadily devolved into an ugly mudslinging match with Pitt furious that Jolie has used privileged court documents to repeat unproven domestic violence allegations against him.In a revised complaint also filed this week, the Fight Club hunk insists he had first refusal on his ex-wife's share of the idyllic winery, situated in Correns, a village in the South of France. By selling instead to Yuri Shefler, Jolie linked the Chateau Miraval to Russia, its homophobic laws, and the invasion of Ukraine - potentially tarnishing the reputation of its highly regarded rosé, Pitt alleges. In her $250 counterclaim Jolie accused Pitt of trying to force her into selling to his company, Mondo Bongo, on 'unreasonable terms' and spreading lies that Shefler was 'an ally of Vladimir Putin.' She also alleged that Pitt hid assets and squandered the chateau's funds on vanity projects, including a swimming pool and an ornate staircase that was rebuilt four times.'The only thing that Jolie's Cross-Complaint gets right is that she and Pitt purchased Château Miraval as a 'loving home for their six children,' Pitt's lawyers protest in his latest riposte. 'As set forth in Plaintiffs' Second Amended Complaint, Pitt and Jolie had a mutual and binding commitment, reflected by their conduct and statements to one another over time, that they would hold Miraval together and, if the time came, that they would sell their interests separately only with the other's consent.'
          The filing says Pitt trusted his-then wife and thus 'devoted his time and his resources to renovating the estate and building a highly successful wine business'. 'Jolie, though supportive of Pitt's efforts on behalf of the family, did none of the work necessary for Miraval's success,' the filing goes on. 'Instead, she allowed Pitt to pour money and sweat equity into the business in reliance on her promise to hold Miraval together, as well as the contractual rights her holding company Nouvel owed his. By the time of their separation, Pitt's investment exceeded Jolie's by nearly $50 million.'The filing argues that Tomb Raider star Jolie 'initially recognized' her obligation to Pitt and acknowledged that she had two options – sell jointly or allow Pitt to buy her out. She even agreed that dividing the business up 68 percent to 38 percent in his favor would be fair, according to her ex-husband's filing. 'But in the summer of 2021, amid a heated child custody dispute with Pitt, Jolie terminated those discussions and secretly purported to sell a 50% stake in the family home and family business to Tenute del Mondo,' the filing adds.'Tenute del Mondo is part of the Russia-affiliated spirits conglomerate Stoli Group, which is owned and controlled by billionaire Yuri Shefler. Shefler, who has been designated as an 'oligarch in the Russian Federation' by the U.S. Treasury Department, had previously sought to buy Miraval, and Pitt had turned him down. 'Pitt learned of Jolie's putative sale to Stoli by way of a press release announcing that Stoli was 'thrilled to have a position alongside Brad Pitt as curators' of Miraval rosé. 'That was by design: Jolie collaborated in secret with Shefler and his associates to pursue and then consummate the purported sale, ensuring that Pitt would be kept in the dark as Stoli and Jolie knowingly violated Pitt's and Mondo Bongo's contractual rights and forced a stranger into Pitt's family home.'Pitt's revised complaint goes to accuse Shefler - a co-defendant and currently based in Switzerland – of destabilizing the winery's operations and plotting a hostile takeover. 'Shefler's Russia-affiliated spirits conglomerate has been the subject of repeat boycotts in connection with Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine and homophobic legislative agenda,' it argues. 'While Shefler may be seeking to launder his reputation by forcing a partnership with one of the world's most well-known and popular actors, affiliation with Shefler and Stoli jeopardizes the reputation of the business.'
          It adds: 'All of this is the direct result of Stoli's and Jolie's secretive, unlawful and tortious conduct and that of others acting with them.' DailyMail.com previously reported that Pitt's allies are furious with Jolie for using the Chateau Miraval dispute to repeat unproven allegations that he attacked her and terrorized their kids after drinking heavily on a 2016 private jet ride. Jolie's filing claims Pitt flew into a rage, grabbing her by the head, shaking her, and shoving her into a bathroom wall before punching the ceiling numerous times. When one of their six kids, then-aged between eight and 15, came to their mom's defense, the two-time Oscar-winner is alleged to have 'lunged at his own child', prompting Jolie to grab him from behind.'To get Jolie off his back, Pitt threw himself backwards into the airplane's seats injuring Jolie's back and elbow,' the countersuit states. 'The children rushed in and all bravely tried to protect each other. Before it was over, Pitt choked one of the children and struck another in the face.' Pitt is adamant he never laid a finger on his children or philanthropist ex-wife, who filed for divorce five days later.She claims in filings that the incident left her 'increasingly uncomfortable with continuing to participate in an alcohol-related business, given the impact of Pitt's acknowledged problem of alcohol abuse on their family.' Both the FBI and reportedly the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services declined to take further action against him in the wake of the spat. But that hasn't prevented her from weaponizing the 'ever-evolving' allegations at every possible opportunity, according to Pitt's pals, who accuse Jolie of 'seeking revenge' and launching a 'misinformation campaign.' Pitt and Jolie met in 2005 on the set of Mr. & Mrs. Smith, playing a bored married couple who discover they are both assassins hired by competing agencies to kill one another. They married at Chateau Miraval in 2014 and parented six kids - three biological and three adopted. Pitt has not shied away from his flaws, telling GQ magazine in the wake of their split that he was quitting booze and seeking therapy. 'It's hit me smack in the face with our divorce: I gotta be more. I gotta be more for them. I have to show them. And I haven't been great at it,' he said.

source : Daily Mail