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Michael Jackson's Neverland Loan Sold to Colony, Person Says
By Jonathan Keehner and Zachary R. Mider
May 11 (Bloomberg) -- Pop star Michael Jackson averted foreclosure of his Neverland Ranch because Colony Capital LLC bought the loan on the property, said a person familiar with the matter.
Colony, the Los Angeles-based private equity firm headed by Thomas Barrack, purchased the loan from Fortress Investment Group LLC and is in discussions with Jackson, said the person, who declined to be identified because the transaction hasn't been disclosed. An announcement of the deal may come as soon as today, the person said.
Jackson, 49, has been struggling with debts that mounted as he fought charges that he molested a 13-year-old boy in 2003 and held him captive at the ranch, which is northwest of Santa Barbara, California. Jackson was cleared of all the charges by a jury in 2005.
The loan on the 2,900-acre ranch is about $23.5 million and the property was scheduled to be auctioned off on May 14. The auction was canceled on May 9, Fox News reported that day.
Colony spokeswoman Caroline Luz declined to comment. Lilly Donohue, a spokeswoman for New York-based Fortress, did not immediately return a message left at her office today. A spokesperson for Jackson couldn't immediately be reached for comment.
Si dice che una fonte ha annunciato che MJ ha venduto Neverladn alla Colony Capital llc, ma da qual che ho capito io è che il presitto è stato rifinanziato da questa. Boh.