The Troubled Life Of Missing Millionare Guma Aguiar

Aguiar’s wife Jamie is also suing him over the couple's prenup, which would only give her $500,000 in the event of a divorce. Jamie claims the agreement is fraudulent because Aguiar knew when they were married in 2005 that he was worth hundreds of millions of dollars, but he hid that fact from her.

Guma Aguiar

News 10’s Bob Norman has written a long blog post detailing Guma Aguiar’s troubled mental health history and the tense and apparently hostile relationship between his wife Jamie and his mother Ellen.

Much of it has already been reported elsewhere, including here.

Still, it’s good to detail all of it again.

Norman reports that Aguiar has been involuntarily committed to psychiatric institutions in the US several times under the Baker Act after suffering psychotic episodes. Aguiar was also institutionalized in Israel after flasely claiming to have met with Gilad Shalit during Shalit’s Hamas captivity.

Aguiar’s uncle and former business partner,  billionaire Thomas Kaplan, claimed in court filings that Aguiar has a Messiah complex and also believed he would be named Prime Minister of Israel.

Aguiar’s wife Jamie filed domestic violence complaints against him that allege Aguiar physically and emotionally abused her and threatened her. Aguiar’s mental state made life for Jamie and their four children "a living hell," Jamie’s attorney, Bill Scherer, told Norman.

Aguiar was arrested for that alleged abuse.

But that isn’t his only arrest. He was arrested several other times, as well, including once after a rough traffic stop by officers from the Broward County Sheriff’s Office. Guma accused the deputies of antisemitism. The deputies found drugs in Guma’s car. The Broward County Sheriff denied Guma’s claims.

Aguiar’s uncle Thomas Kaplan is suing Aguiar for fraud and for Aguiar’s share $220 million share of the natural gas company the two men are currently fighting over.

Kaplan, Norman writes, has “the clear upper hand in the suit, partly due to Aguiar's actions, which included hacking into Kaplan's email account to get confidential information. When caught, Aguiar blamed it on his bipolar disorder.”

Aguiar’s wife Jamie is also suing him over the couple's prenup, which would only give her $500,000 in the event of a divorce. Jamie claims the agreement is fraudulent because Aguiar knew when they were married in 2005 that he was worth hundreds of millions of dollars, but he hid that fact from her.

Aguiar’s mother Ellen filed a motion in Broward County court Thursday – the day after Aguiar went missing –seeking control of her son’s estate claiming Aguiar probably dead. The Coast Guard was still actively searching for Aguiar at that time.

Aguiar’s wife’s attorney complained to Norman about Ellen Aguiar.

"Her behavior is bizarre to the extreme, including filing papers while the divers are still looking for the body of her son."

What Norman doesn't report is that Aguiar is a major donor to Chabad, to Orthodox Zionist institutions in Israel, and to some haredi organizations there, as well.

Aguiar was also a major donor to Rabbi Leib Tropper's Eternal Jewish Family before he broke with Tropper (and with Aguiar's uncle, Thomas Kaplan, who is a major EJF supporter) shortly before Tropper's sex scandal and related thuggery was exposed by FailedMessiah.com.

Much of Aguiar's wealth seems to have been dissipated before his disappearance. Was it legitimately given to charity? Or are charities laundering money for him? With the number of money laundering arrests of haredi rabbis of late, Jamie Aguiar should look into this.

Aguiar and Kaplan also fought for control of the family's foundation, named after Ellen Aguiar's and Thomas Kaplan's mother, Lillian Kaplan, Guma Aguiar's grandmother.

Findings of fact about Guma Aguiar taken by Norman from federal court documents filed in Thomas Kaplan's lawsuit against Guma Aguiar:

Aguiar suffers from severe bipolar disorder and psychosis. Bipolar disorder is characterized by episodes of mania and depression. Manic episodes are sustained periods of increased activity and energy associated with euphoria or irritability and Bipolar disorder is a form of mental illness that affects two to three percent of the American population ... Aguiar’s psychosis manifested itself in both grandiose and paranoid delusions. In the spring of 2008, Aguiar expressed the grandiose belief that he is or could be the Messiah. With respect to his paranoid delusions, Aguiar has stated on multiple occasions that Kaplan was trying to kill him. Aguiar believes that he has been poisoned, that he was shot in the back from a helicopter, that snipers have been following him and that the medical staff at an Israeli hospital were injecting him with poison in order to kill him.

Aguiar’s bipolar disorder first manifested itself in 1997 when he was Baker Acted at a Florida psychiatric hospital for approximately 12 days. At the time, Aguiar was 19 years old. Aguiar experienced the onset of another manic episode in mid-June 2009 and is still recovering from this episode. From approximately June 2009 through January 2010, Aguiar was also psychotic. ... Aguiar may have been psychotic at other times. ... An individual who is manic may attempt to alleviate the symptoms of a manic episode, such as a decreased need for sleep, racing thoughts or distractability, by self-medicating. In Aguiar’s case, he experienced racing thoughts, insomnia, talkativeness, rapid speech and irritability when manic. Aguiar is presently in treatment .... In addition to mental illness, Aguiar has a substance abuse problem. Substance abuse can often follow a manic episode and can exacerbate existing manic symptoms. Aguiar self-administered legal and illegal substances including alcohol, marijuana, Xanax (an anti-anxiety medication), Ambien (a sleeping pill), anabolic steroids (testosterone) and OxyContin (an opiate). Some of these substances are consistent with an attempt by Aguiar to self-medicate his manic symptoms. However, Aguiar’s steroid use is not indicative of an attempt to self-medicate Aguiar’s mental illness...

[Hat Tip: Joel Katz.]

Comments

[Jake]

A rachmunas. It w clear to me e was dead the night they found the boat.
Now someone has to look out for his wife and children as the priority.

bD" H

BTW this is a real case of Agunah. Not some man withholding a ghet until civil court proceedings are over.

Agunah is related to the Hebrew word for anchor. Ogen.
It is not so much that she is chained but fathered anchored in a place of unknowing if the husband is dead or alive. A sea voyage was the classic example used in discussing Agunah.

[TheRealJoe]

@Shmarya this guy might be in a very dangerous state, or even G-D forbid dead, yet rehashing all of his struggles is extremely important I see.

This site and many other's, have reported these stories for years, but seriously what's the big deal. Rich people are notorious for acting aggressive around police,and for getting into fights with their trophy wives.

The fact is he gave millions of dollars to charity, and not just to your favorite org Chabad,he also bailed out at least 2 Israeli sports teams knowing he wouldn't make a profit for years.

[sr]

I hope he is alive and well despite the odds. I am curious as to the feelings of the many organizations who benefited from his largesse

[Mikal Grass]

SR, my feelings exactly. If he is alive, which i think he is, II can see one of them not so subtely hinting that a donation is in order to than Hashem for his survival.

[effie]

Eh. He knew he had a serious mental illness but was med non compliant. Because of this, he not only screwed up his own life, he screwed up the lives of his kids. I have little sympathy for the guy.

[mechl]

i believe the entire kiddushin could be annulled, if it can be proven that he his his illness, as well as the fact that he his his money from her. just thinking out loud

[mechl]

oy
dunno why my finger did s instead of d

i meant "hid his illness" also "hid his money"

[jj]

a guy like guma should have never been by himself .

first for security ( he had too many ennemies , including his own wife )
and because of his mental state and fear .
( which is justified , don't forget he is a millionaire )

he should have always , at all times of the day and night , be with security guards . what a fool ! he is definitely dead . his body will prob never be found . case closed .

[WoolSilkCotton, rock star and sports superstar]

There is no evidence of foul play on the boat.

Most likely he is faking his own death. He will re-emerge in someplace like Israel. South Africa. Eastern Europe or Russia in a few years.

[dh]

Dead guys don't leave their wallet and cell phone on deck. Only live guys do that so you'll think they're dead.

[who knows]

Poor guy. It looks like his life was hell because of his mental condition.

[WoolSilkCotton, rock star and sports superstar]

The way in which Chabad took advantage of his largesse, when I'm sure they knew of his psychiatric issues, is shameful.

It would not come as a surprise if, when he re-emerges, and he has his psychological demons under control, he jettisons all the religious baloney that Chabad pumped him up with in order to take advantage of him.

[frum]

WSK, you are an idiot. Who should Chabad fundraise from, poor people?! The people who say we have zero interest in you or what you stand for? G Aguiar was very generous and very willing to share some of his fortune to charity. Fortunately for Chabad, they were a primary beneficiary. But considering that Chabad's annual budget worldwide must be in the Billion dollar range, though Aguiar gave a lot and very generously, he couldn't have even covered one percent of Chabad's global annual budget. As far as I know he wasn't giving Chabad $10,000,000 (approximately 1 percent of their yearly budget) a year.

[dh]

Did Chabad have comparable fortune back in the day when you could actually see the rebbe in his chair?

[Yid]

Before blasting Chabad for being after the "rich guys," it's important to realize that for every Guma out there, there's about 500 Chabad House "magnets," that is, people who would be viewed as strange, poor and eccentric by much of societies standards, yet shluchim gladly welcome them with open arms in their shuls and Shabbos tables.

[ah-pee-chorus]

WSC-

my moneys on suicide.

[Solly]

Aguiar’s wife Jamie is also suing him over the couple's prenup, which would only give her $500,000 in the event of a divorce. Jamie claims the agreement is fraudulent because Aguiar knew when they were married in 2005 that he was worth hundreds of millions of dollars, but he hid that fact from her.

Sorry to break the news to you Jamie!! Your argument that you didn't know your Hub was in fact richer is a very poor one!! You signed that prenup tough on you!! I don't see any grounds to make an agreement fraudulent just because he didn't reveal to you his wealth to the last dime. And by the way I know many married women that would wish to get 500k in the event of a divorce, So what are you Kvetching about?
Lets hope they find him safe & sound and everyone lives happily ever after!! And this should all be irrelevant!

[WoolSilkCotton, rock star and sports superstar]

Frum, when someone is not in his right state of mind and you know he is suffering from a mental illness that disconnects him from reality, you do not pump him with vodka and ask him for his money.

Of course, if you are with Chabad, you probably don't understand why there is anything wrong with that.

[David]

Frum, when someone is not in his right state of mind and you know he is suffering from a mental illness that disconnects him from reality, you do not pump him with vodka and ask him for his money.

Of course, if you are with Chabad, you probably don't understand why there is anything wrong with that.

Posted by: WoolSilkCotton, rock star and sports superstar | June 25, 2012 at 04:43 AM

Were you present when he made his donations?

Why would you gratuitously assume that he was not mentally cognisant when making the donations? It is as likely, if not more likely, that he was cognisant than that he wasn;t. Bipolar sufferers can spend a lot of time thinking perfectly normally.

...unless you just want an excuse to bash Chabad

Shame on you

[just saying]

There's actually no divorce here. And you cant screw a spouse in death. Jaime is probably contesting whatever she signed to ensure her executive estate (50%) plus.

As for With respect to his paranoid delusions, Aguiar has stated on multiple occasions that Kaplan was trying to kill him.... well the guy did disappear and perhaps die under questionable circumstances. As long as he was alive and well you could call it paranoid... but now you have to wonder what did he know, who did he suspect?

To tie up the whole Agna issue, it might be wisest for Jaime to follow the Tropper model-- wear pants and conversion is revoked. Conversion revoked, then dont need a GEt. Then if she wants to start all over and continue raising her kids in Jewish manner, they can start from scratch.

Seems to me Jaime didn't have an easy life. She knew Aguiar since they were in high school, so she knew what he wa about. Their personal life and choices are their own private affairs.

Understandably the mother in law wants to control the money-- it was afterall, money borrowed from her side of the family that got him to where he was. Again, a private family affair and really noone's business. Now it will be a financial battle between brother and sister -- Tom and Ellen.

This article only adds two suspects who may have had motives to the story...

[5th Avenue]

TheRealJoe, there's no surprise that Shmarya thrives off of other peoples sorrow. That's his very essence & purpose in life. And such posts are incomplete without WSC seconding his motions

[Fool]

"Were you present when he made his donations?"

Yes I was. And the "in with the vodka, out with the cash, now let us pray to the rebbi..." was exactly how it went down.

{All the stuff about paranoid delusions} Let me state that some of those "delusions" actually got proven in court, but you won't see it in the documents the spouse's attorney is putting out in public.

Furthermore, the truth behind the Broward arrest and beat-down, as well as the whitewash and ridicule afterwards should give anyone nightmares (in video, audio and documents).

Also, some mentioned lack of security: All security was fired and not replaced not long ago, by those who should be persons of interest, or at least faking being aggrieved at this tragedy...

Money issues: The new CFO was fired within 24 hours *before* the disappearence...

That's all for now, but just be sure that Guma got set up for the shaft, the only question is if he succeeded in disappearing before the hammer fell, or got whacked.

[Adam Neira]

I hope FM isn't descending into a tabloid gossip site. Many media proprietors know that one of the reasons that people read their papers, blogs, magazines is so that they can take vicarious satisfaction at the misfortunes of others. Dirty laundry should not be aired in public I think. (The wise Parisians have a law about this BTW.)

Prayers for Guma Aguiar.

[Mikal W. Grass]

Solly, you are dead wrong about a prenup being ironclad just because it was signed by both parties. Both parties state that they made an truthful disclosure of all assets to the other party prior to signing the prenup. If it is later discovered that one party was less than truthful about the money issues, the prenup, or at least that part of the prenup, can be tossed.

[WoolSilkCotton]

Fool, thanks.

Taking advantage of mentally troubled wealthy people is a classic Chabad technique. I've seen them do this in a couple of different shuls I used to go to.

Even if Guma had periods of clarity when he made his business decisions, it was certainly unethical of Chabad to ply him with vodka and pry open his wallet, when they knew that they could get a person with known serious mental illness into a state of compromise. But that's Chabad for you.

[Jeff]

TheRealJoe, there's no surprise that Shmarya thrives off of other peoples sorrow. That's his very essence & purpose in life.

Posted by: 5th Avenue | June 25, 2012 at 08:12 AM

Has it ever occurred to you that without the steady stream of dirt emanating from your world, he wouldn't have the material?

[5th Avenue]

Plenty of what Shmarya "finds" is contrived and in any case pales in comparison with his own ancestry

[Jewish Mayhem]

We all knew that Guma had mental problems. After all, he funded Shannon Orand's divorce and conversion and helped her and her ex-detective (disgraced) daddy, Neil Hines - both played Guma for money.

I wouldn't be surprised if Guma is hiding out to keep away from leeches like Shannon Orand Nuszen (yep, she bagged another one-her third) and her special daddy Neil Hines (if that's still the name he's using - he's changed it before).

[observer]

If his body has not been found, no one can be sure he is dead...including his wife and mother. That is the halacha. Agunah does not apply here, since his wife is NOT jewish.

[Jeff]

Plenty of what Shmarya "finds" is contrived and in any case pales in comparison with his own ancestry

Posted by: 5th Avenue | June 25, 2012 at 11:51 AM

Please. You'll say anything. You're just a tightly wound, frum little ball of hatred.

[Yaknahaz]

GUMA'S WIFE IS NOT JEWISH. SHE DID NOTCONVERT tHROUGH ORTHODOX BETH DIN. SO NO AGUNAH! GUMA MARRIED HER AS A TINOK SHNISHBA lATE IN HIS TWENTIES AND HAD 3 KIDS BEFORE HE STARTED TO DO COME BACK TO HIS ROOTS

[Yaknahaz]

GUMA'S WIFE IS NOT JEWISH. SHE DID NOT CONVERT THROUGH ORTHODOX BETH DIN. SO NO AGUNAH! GUMA MARRIED HER AS A TINOK SHNISHBA lATE IN HIS TWENTIES AND HAD 3 KIDS BEFORE HE STARTED TO COME BACK TO HIS ROOTS.

[Shmarya]

GUMA'S WIFE IS NOT JEWISH. SHE DID NOT CONVERT THROUGH ORTHODOX BETH DIN. SO NO AGUNAH! GUMA MARRIED HER AS A TINOK SHNISHBA lATE IN HIS TWENTIES AND HAD 3 KIDS BEFORE HE STARTED TO COME BACK TO HIS ROOTS.

Posted by: Yaknahaz | June 25, 2012 at 07:14 PM

She converted in an Orthodox beit din.

[Sheketz Aroiss]

Which beis din? Lubavitch?

[kosher]

she is jewish, kosher conversion

[frum]

Sheketz Aroiss, I beleieve it was Rabbi Bomzer's beis din (Flatbush).

[Adele]

She can't be a convert if she dresses the way she does. If she tried to convert it was for the wrong reasons, so it is null and void anyway.

[Jeff]

She can't be a convert if she dresses the way she does. If she tried to convert it was for the wrong reasons, so it is null and void anyway.

Posted by: Adele | June 26, 2012 at 12:58 AM

Really? Are you a posek?

Where is this current crop of frum imbeciles coming from?

[kosher]

adele
once she be became a convert ,she got a jewish neshama, she is jewish
and she is 100% jewish

[Lee]

Chabad does not have a conversion beth din. Bomzer used to do their conversions for decades but he started accepting women like this one into the fold and leaving her to her own devices outside of an orthodox community, Chabad has since stopped accepted Bomzer conversions not knowing who were the good ones and who were the bad ones. So now, on one hand future converts will have to go through other orthodox beth dins, on the other no orthodox beth din worth their salt would revoke Bomzer conversions, because those people are indeed jewish as it is. This lady might have gone off the derech since conversion, but it cannot be revoked.

[sean macner]

hahaha i lived across the street from the guy in rio vista. he has no panic disorder he is a drug addict he used to dance in his backyard with a cowboyvest and police man hat smoking some sort of drugs higher than a kite