Despite facing criminal charges and probation, Hadid continued with the construction that ended in a civil suit, resulting in the recent settlement
By Dolores Quintana
Developer Mohamed Hadid, the father of supermodels Bella and Gigi Hadid, has come off the worst in a legal battle over a megamansion that he attempted to allegedly build illegally on property that he purchased much to the chagrin of the property’s neighbors as reported by The Richest.com.
Hadid purchased the disputed property in 2011, tore down the existing estate and then began to build a huge megamansion which angered the neighborhood. His intention was to build a megamansion that he would then sell for $250 million.
According to reports, Hadid did not secure the proper permits needed for the construction and the construction itself began to alarm neighbors and disturb the peace of the area. In 2017, Hadid was criminally charged because of his actions related to the development and faced jail time. He decided to plead no contest to the charges and was placed on three years of probation.
None of this stopped Hadid from continuing to develop the land parcel and he then faced a civil lawsuit from the residents of the neighborhood which they won a judgment of $2.6 million to reimburse them for the legal fees resulting from the lawsuit. The judge in charge of the case also ruled that the unfinished mega mansion would have to be demolished.
Hadid said, as quoted by The Richest.com, “This is a joke — it’s crazy.” He then stated that he planned to countersue the neighbors for millions of dollars.
One of the neighbors, Joe Horacek, expressed happiness that the megamansion would be torn down and expressed doubt that Hadid would pay what he owes, as quoted by The Richeset, “We’re so happy to be able to look outside and not see that monstrosity — and not have to worry about it coming down on top of us. “We haven’t seen a penny from Hadid. We’ll have to hire people to chase down his assets if we want to get paid. I feel vindicated. Now I just want Hadid to pay up and go away.”
Hadid filed a third appeal on the case’s ruling in January.
