Billionaire Allegedly Uses South Dakota Trust To Hide Money And Assets From Wife In Divorce
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A court hearing in Sioux Falls, South Dakota Thursday afternoon could open up a real can of worms for a multi-billionaire that usually likes media attention.
Ed Bosarge owns a Caribbean island, super-yachts, mansions, and even his own website www.edbosarge.com, promoting his work in mathematics and lifesaving medicine.
Here in Houston, Bosarge and his wife Marie own a 26,400 square-foot mansion in the Memorial area. When the property hit the market in 2014 – listed for sale at $43 million – it was the most expensive residential listing ever in Houston.
But here’s what you won’t find on Ed Bosarge’s website.
Ed and Marie Bosarge were married in July of 1989 – long before they got super rich. Documents in their divorce case allege that Ed is using trusts and business entities to hide money from his wife. There are allegations Bosarge took advantage of South Dakota laws to move billions into various trusts to cheat his now ex-wife out of billions.
You can imagine how nasty this fight will get.
Shortly after the trust was created, Bosarge filed for divorce in Harris County Family Court. The trial is scheduled in April, but what happens in South Dakota is vital to the divorce fight here in Texas.
A report from The Guardian newspaper in November highlighted the way South Dakota law is being used by the mega rich to hide money from ex- spouses.
“To some, South Dakota is a ‘fly-over’ state,” the chief justice of the state’s supreme court said in a speech to the legislature in January. “While many people may find a way to ‘fly over’ South Dakota, somehow their dollars find a way to land here.”
A South Dakota trust can be used to protect assets from claims not just from ex-spouses, but disgruntled business partners, and creditors. The Bosarge case may be one of the most graphic examples of the wealthy trying to abuse and pervert South Dakota’s financial laws to hide money.
A hearing on a motion filed by the Ed Bosarge’s adult children, who are beneficiaries of the trust, is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at the Minnehaha County Courthouse before the Honorable Robin J. Houwman. The divorce battle rages on in Houston as well with the next hearing in the case set for January 3, 2020 in front of the Honorable Chip Wells of the 312th District Court.
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