Billionaire scion accused of rampant gambling, drug use with prostitutes, harassed therapist hired to help him: report
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The unidentified son of a wealthy and influential family had access to an extravagant lifestyle, including unlimited cash and a private jet, while he embarked on a campaign of intimidation targeting the therapist hired by his wealthy father to treat his addictions and personality disorders, which helped fuel the man's downward spiral, according to court papers.
Neither the 34-year-old man nor his father are identified in Dr. Paul M. Conti's complaint, which describes how the son stole millions, gambled away their cash and spent time with prostitutes. Conti's patient is only identified as John Doe and the family's name and business are redacted in the court papers. But a New York Post reporter spotted billionaire Jay Schottenstein entering a Manhattan courtroom Monday for a closed-door hearing, according to the report.
Doe is suffering from narcissistic personality disorder, which included borderline personality disorder and antisocial traits, according to court papers. His condition manifested itself in several ways including an addiction to Xanax, frequent cocaine use, thefts of money from his parents, multi-million dollar gambling losses and violent abusive and threatening behavior.
"As for Doe's family, the have exacerbated their son's problems because they have at all times refused to take effective action, despite entreaties by Dr. Conti to help stope their son's egregious threats," the court papers state.
Schottenstein is a Columbus, Ohio-based philanthropist and head of DSW and American Eagle Outfitters, among other businesses. The Schottenstein family was worth a reported $2.7 billion in 2015, when they were named one of America’s Richest Families by Forbes.
A late-2018 profile of Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein, featured in the Columbus Monthly, noted he is considered the second-wealthiest Central Ohio resident, surpassed only by L Brands CEO Les Wexner.
Conti, whose practice is based in Oregon, was commissioned in 2016 to help Doe as he “was spinning out of control in a host of ways,” according to the lawsuit’s initial complaint, filed in January 2018. Even though Conti says that Doe would not take responsibility for his behavior, he clearly lays that blame for Doe's behavior, in part, on his family.
"Doe would not cooperate with treatment and his parents consistently rewarded and enabled him regardless of how outrageous his conduct was," the lawsuit states.
"Your [s.i.c.] one big f------ fraud. You’re a f------ con. That’s it…What the narrative you put on me about being a gambler??? Addicted to xanax?? You dumb f--- Steve wonder could see that from a f------ mile you little f------ f------."
Over the course of months, Doe then sent a barrage of expletive-ridden emails and text messages to Conti, often also sending the scrawls to his parents, the psychiatrist’s colleagues, medical professionals and big-name attorneys.
On April 6, 2017, Doe texted Conti, calling him a "fraud" and a "con."
Conti emailed Doe’s parents that day informing them that he would be ending treatment, but the harassing and threatening messages persisted.
"Dearest Dr CON-ti
"Just wanted to wish my favorite. fraudulent dr a happy Father's Day. Go stock up on your attorney you piece of s--- malpracticeing mother f-----. I'm waiting for you to engage with your lawyer. I'm waiting for his call you f------ Con"
Conti claimed that Doe’s parents continued to enable their son. In one case from the fall of 2016, they paid for a rabbi to fly to the states from Israel at Doe’s request, only to later find out that the rabbi had also brought him a stash of Xanax. The family took no action after finding out, the lawsuit states.
"Doe's life is a tragedy, as is the damage he has inflicted upon his extraordinarily wealthy family," the lawsuit states. "But neither his drug addiction, his severe psychiatric problems, nor his parents' wealth entitled him to inflict the damage he has caused Dr. Conti, or the damage he is likely to inflict in the future unless he is prevented from doing so."
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Conti is seeking a minimum of $75,000 in damages, claiming he has suffered “severe emotional distress” as a result of the alleged harassment. He did not immediately respond to FOX Business's request for comment
“The closest Doe's father came to setting boundaries was, on one occasion for a limited period of time, prohibiting Doe from using one of his two Lamborghinis,” according to the court papers.