Uma Thurman and other stars in cash scandal
SCORES of Hollywood stars including Uma Thurman, Al Pacino, Sylvester Stallone and Wesley Snipes, have lost tens of millions of pounds in a new Ponzi cash scandal.
They claim celebrity financial adviser Kenneth Starr, who was arrested by FBI agents last month, fleeced them in a scheme similar to that operated by jailed multi-billion dollar fraudster Bernie Madoff.
Filmmaker Martin Scorsese, playwright Neil Simon, directors Mike Nichols and Nora Ephron and TV illusionist David Blaine also allege Starr, 66, swindled them .
Instead of investing their cash, they say Starr spent millions on the high life with his 34-year-old wife Diane, a former stripper with whom he bought a $7.5million (£5million) apartment in New York in April.
Whenever high-profile investors became suspicious, federal prosecutors say, Starr would pay them back before moving on to another super-wealthy “target”.
Starr shares the same name but is no relation to the former US solicitor-general who investigated President Clinton’s affair with Monica Lewinsky.
Yesterday a senior FBI agent said: “ So far, we have tracked more than $30million (£20million) in misappropriated funds but the final figure could easily be four or five times that.”
Starr, whose $3,000 (£2,000) suits and a $30,000 (£20,000) Rolex watch boosted his image as a successful businessman, is believed to have snared dozens of high-profile investors at charity and society events.
As with Madoff, jailed for 150 years last year for swindling clients of an estimated $18billion (£12billion) , word of Starr’s “too good to be true” promises of enormous profits spread like wildfire in the entertainment industry.
Kill Bill actress Thurman became suspicious and managed to claw back $1 million days before Starr’s arrest . Sylvester Stallone also withdrew the bulk of his investment earlier this year but few other victims were as lucky or shrewd.
Blade star Wesley Snipes, who faces a three-year jail sentence for tax evasion but is free on bail pending an appeal, is believed to have lost a fortune to Starr. Jailed New York jeweller to the stars Jacob Arabo reportedly lost $14million .
Starr, who has been remanded in custody, faces multiple felony fraud charges and could face up to 50 years in jail if convicted.