generalspeaking

Mendacious Philanthropist

"Although Tsai is not a named beneficiary of the trust, she had complete control over Marston's finances and had the ability to distribute the trust's assets at her discretion."
"Based on the fact that Marston is 92 years old, was not in good health and did not drive, there was nothing to indicate that those purchases primarily benefited Marston or were purchased in her best interests."
Legal Court affidavit

Imagine, a glamorous wealthy socialite from Palm Beach arrested by police on suspicion of embezzlement. Clearly a misdirection of police resources. Claiming that someone like Nancy Tsai, well known as a philanthropist and a member in good standing of the Palm Beach leisure celebrity class would stoop so low as to exploit a 92-year-old woman afflicted with Alzheimer's disease; accused of grand theft in looting large sums of money from the woman's trust account.

Who do they think they're dealing with? This is a woman who founded the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation, a champion of the arts, a former Torontonian married to a millionaire real estate developer. And on his demise she married a billionaire investor and Wall Street fund manager. She was arrested in her Palm Beach condominium, to appear on the public "Booking Blotter" of the Palm Beach police. Ruinous to her reputation.

Nancy Tsai had known Helga Marston, now 92, for 40 years, and she was well trusted. So much so that she opened a trust account at UBS Financial on her behalf and was granted Power of Attorney, later named trustee to the account. UBS Financial became nonplussed then serious concerned when it understood large amounts to have been drawn from the account administered by Ms. Tsai for the uber-wealthy Ms. Marston.

$2,292,000 for a penthouse apartment; $302,000 to renovate the apartment; $170,000 for a 2013 Bentley Continental GT V8 coup, registered to Ms. Tsai; $101,200 for a 2013 Mercedes S550, an executive-level sedan; and lease payments for a 2013 Mercedes E350S4 luxury wagon. Oh, and other incidental expenses like flight in a private jet from West Palm Beach to Toronto as sole passenger. Restaurant and shopping bills, the whole shtick.

Let's face it, though, those are a lot of costly vehicles for an extremely elderly woman who doesn't drive. But Ms. Tsai wanted everything to be just so for her friend. Ms. Marston signed her agreement for the penthouse to be in Ms. Tsai's name. That occurred after Ms. Marston's doctor, Gabriela Goldstein, informed police her patient had "zero" mental capacity.

Oh, and again just incidentally, Ms. Tsai and her daughter, E. Sarah Paul were named in a March 2013 amended will as beneficiaries of the wealthy Ms. Marston's property. It's just so sad that suspicion falls on trustworthy people just because they want to do the right thing for elderly people who are confused by age and medical-health circumstances.

Labels: Canada-US Relations, Crime, Social-Cultural Deviations

posted by Pieface @ Wednesday, April 30, 2014