Wayne Newton locked in Casa de Shenandoah court battle for prized possessions
American singer and entertainer Wayne Newton is embroiled in an ongoing battle over his former home in Las Vegas — Casa de Shenandoah — as he argues that items contained inside the property belong to him, and not the anonymous new owner.
Newton and his family appeared in court in Las Vegas on Wednesday, as reported by the Las Vegas Review Journal, as he attempts to lay claim to the belongings he left behind.
Newton’s 36-acre property was sold in July, but the buyer remains anonymous. The entity that purchased it is only known as Smoketree LLC. Newton’s family had previously sold the property for $19.5 million amid bankruptcy proceedings. He then leased the property for a public museum, which closed in April 2018.
The new owners have claimed as their own a number of items that were on display in Casa de Shenandoah while the property was open to the public. Among them are costumes made by Newton’s mother, a microphone given to Newton by Frank Sinatra, a bow tie from Bobby Darin and a handwritten letter from Elvis Presley, as reported by the Las Vegas Review Journal.
The owners, however, said they believed the effects were part of the purchase.
WAYNE NEWTON'S FORMER CASA DE SHENANDOAH RANCH TAKES MULTI-MILLION-DOLLAR HIT
“I am outraged that the new owners of my former home want to hide behind anonymity while they refuse to let me remove my irreplaceable memorabilia that I have collected my whole life, the antiques, art, other personal possessions, including family photos,” Newton said Thursday afternoon, according to the Review Journal. “The lack of humanity is astounding. The last thing I want is another fight, but they have left me no choice. I believe that fighting for the truth is the right thing to do.”
Newton was granted permission to visit the property to take inventory on his collection in order to make the case that they do in fact belong to him.
According to the Review Journal, Newton has said he still owns the title and license to Casa de Shenandoah, and may one day re-open the museum elsewhere.
The two sides are scheduled to meet back in court on Dec. 4. The owner will not appear in court alongside his counsel.
As previously reported by FOX Business, Newton sold the property for $5.56 million, which was an enormous cut from the 2013 asking price of $70 million.
Newton purchased the property in 1966.
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