Les Wexner and the battle over his $18 million Ferrari
Last summer, at an event called the Goodwood Festival of Speed, Columbus billionaire Les Wexner purchased a 1954 Ferrari 375-Plus for nearly $18 million. The 375-Plus is one of only five ever built. It has a 4.9-litre engine, can go from 0 to 60mph in just four seconds and reach a top speed of 186mph. Impressive. And Les wants his money back.
In the 1980s, part of the car was stolen from a trailer near Cincinnati and found its way to Belgium. Since then, there have been legal disputes in as to true ownership of the vehicle. The British auction house Bonhams brought all parties together two years ago and supposedly resolved all issues in regards to the Ferrari. Then in 2015, Bonhams offered the car at auction, stating that “all relevant litigation” had been settled. That’s when Les Wexner came in with his $18 million and bought the car.
After Wexner’s money was collected, he learned that there remains ongoing disputes over ownership of the car. Les has since filed a lawsuit against Bonhams and the sellers of the car claiming essentially that they lied in saying that the legal matters had been resolved and that they knew for a fact that those matters had not been resolved when auctioning off the Ferrari. At this point, the car is believed to be in London and the auction house still has Wexner’s money. He is suing to get his $18 million back, plus damages and compounded interest.
The convoluted mess also involves suits and countersuits between Bonhams, a Paraguayan car dealer and a woman whose father once bought the car from an heir to the Kleenex fortune. A judge in London has now decided to hear all of the arguments together and settle the matter once and for all. Court actions begins this September. (jj)
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