Stan Lee’s former business manager arrested, charged with elder abuse against the Marvel mastermind
Stan Lee’s former business manager, Keya Morgan, a.k.a., Keyarash Mazhari, was arrested in Arizona yesterday after being charged with the elder abuse of Marvel Comics legend Stan Lee. Stan “The Man” Lee died in November at the tender age of 95. He was the beloved writer, editor, film executive producer, publisher and co-creator of comics like Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, Daredevil, Black Panther, X-Men and many more.
ABC News reported that Morgan is looking at felony charges “including theft, embezzlement, forgery or fraud against an elder adult, and false imprisonment of an elder adult. A misdemeanor count also alleges elder abuse.”
Prosecutors in Los Angeles said that Morgan tried capitalizing on his prior relationship with the Marvel mastermind and was going after Lee’s money even though he had no legal right to do so.
Police say Morgan pocketed more than $262,000 from autograph signing sessions Lee did in May 2018. Authorities say Morgan at one point also took Lee from his Hollywood Hills home to a Beverly Hills condominium “where Morgan had more control over Lee.”
In his later years, despondent over the passing of his beloved wife Joan in 2017, Lee became an easy target for many that were going after his wealth. In a 2018 lawsuit filed against another ex-business manager, Lee stated that he “became the target of various unscrupulous businessmen, sycophants and opportunists who saw a chance to take advantage of [his] despondent state of mind,” according to People.
That complaint states that Jerardo Olivarez withdrew approximately $4.6 million dollars from Lee’s Merrill Lynch Account – without Lee’s authorization. “Another $1.4 million has simply disappeared from Lee’s accounts through a series of complicated wire transfers that Olivarez initiated and ultimate received,” according to Deadline.
Variety shared that Olivarez used funds drained from Lee to purchase a West Hollywood condo and set up a fictitious charity, Hands of Respect, “to sell comic books stamped with Lee’s blood.”
And in 2018, Keya Morgan allegedly spirited Lee away from his home in the Hollywood Hills late one night and kept him prisoner in a Los Angeles condo telling the aging Lee that his life was in danger, which later prompted Lee with the help of his daughter to file a restraining order against Morgan.
The plan is to extradite Morgan from Arizona back to Los Angeles to face charges. He’s currently being held on $300,000 bail.
For more on the story, see the video accompanying this article.
~ Written by Richard Webster, Ace News Today / Connect with Richard on Facebook and Twitter
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