Legal

Bill and Melinda Gates are shifting more of their fortune into Melindas' name ... and new documents show she's gonna be a big fan of Mexican Coca-Cola.

Here's what we know ... the day after Melinda filed her divorce docs, the estranged couple filed docs with the Securities Exchange Commission that show she now owns more than 5 percent of Coca-Cola Femsa  ... which is why they had to notify the SEC.

According to the docs, Melinda acquired 25,793,660 shares of the Coke bottler which is based in Mexico, and Bill has zero shares. Those shares would be valued at around $120 million today.

It appears the shares were transferred from The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. For reference, the Foundation still retains more than 62 million shares of Coca-Cola Femsa.

Another doc, also filed on May 4, shows Melinda now owns more than 155 million shares of Grupo Televisa ... which is a Mexican multimedia company that produces programs, several of which air on Univision.

For those keeping score ... the Grupo Televisa stock is worth about $386 million.

As we reported, nearly $2 billion in shares of AutoNation and the Canadian National Railway were also transferred to Melinda on May 3 ... the day she filed the divorce docs.

'Tiger King' star Jeff Lowe's got trouble with the feds again ... but this time he says they're actually hauling animals out of his zoo.

Jeff tells TMZ ... the authorities executed a search and seizure warrant Thursday morning at his Tiger King Park in Thackerville, Oklahoma and began taking animals away, which he believes is a violation of his constitutional rights.

He says the feds are refusing to tell him exactly what's going on, but according to the warrant ... they're taking animals protected by the Endangered Species Act. We're told the warrant was issued by a federal judge this week in the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

Jeff sent us video from the scene, where he says the feds are hauling away one of his liligers ... an animal he claims is NOT protected under the Endangered Species Act. BTW, a liliger is the offspring of a male lion and a female liger ... a lion and a tiger.

Jeff's wife Lauren is heard saying the feds are taking all of the zoo's hybrid animals, and she's concerned they are all going to be spayed or neutered.

Jeff tells us, "This is why Lauren and I are moving overseas to take over an animal refuge there. 'Tiger King' made the USDA look so incompetent that they have a vendetta against everyone that was featured on the show."

We broke the story in January that the feds were coming after Lowe's big cats at his park, allegedly over an unauthorized euthanasia of a tiger cub. According to legal docs at the time ... the authorities made it clear they wanted to seize all of Jeff's big cats that were a year old or younger, plus their mothers.

Love County Sheriff William Grisham tells us his office was alerted the feds would be executing a search and seizure warrant, and he was present for it. He says the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was the lead agency, but the USDA was also there during the seizure of the animals.

Sheriff Grisham says the warrant was for 8 big cats, but he believes the feds only took 4. However, Jeff tells us they seized 6.

The Bill and Melinda divorce has been a done deal for months, TMZ has learned, and they had a plan to announce it back in March ... a plan that included renting a remote, private island where the entire family -- with one BIG exception -- could avoid the media once the announcement was made ... sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ.

Our sources say Melinda Gates rented Calivigny Island in Grenada ... yes, she rented the entire island for $132,000 a night. The plan was for Melinda and the kids, as well as their significant others, to come to the island -- everyone except Bill. We're told everyone in the family already knew Bill and Melinda were divorcing. There was a considerable amount of acrimony associated with the split and we're told virtually everyone in the family took Melinda's side. Another way of putting it ... we're told they were very angry at Bill, and that's why he wasn't invited.

The reason for going to the island ... so no one from the media could reach them and ask about the split when it was announced during their stay.

But, there was a problem ... lawyers for both Bill and Melinda were trying to hash out a divorce settlement and there were still outstanding issues that couldn't be resolved at the time of the trip. We're told Melinda decided to go anyway ... well, with everyone BUT Bill.

So here's the takeaway. First, we're told this was not a friendly split. We're told Melinda and most of the family were furious at Bill for various things they claim he had done.

If Quavo and Saweetie weren't broken up, they might be celebrating together -- neither of them will face criminal charges for their elevator altercation ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... the case was referred to the L.A. City Attorney's Office, which declined to file charges. We're told, based on the evidence -- surveillance video of the then-couple in a physical confrontation -- there was no likelihood of a conviction for either party.

Remember, we'd been told the cops wanted to talk to both Saweetie and Quavo to get more info on what went down before and after the video, but we now know that never happened.

The exes were clearly looking to put the situation behind them, and, at least publicly, it didn't seem like either was holding a grudge over the fight. Quavo said, "We had an unfortunate situation almost a year ago that we both learned and moved on from. I haven’t physically abused Saweetie and have real gratitude for what we did share overall."

Saweetie said something to the same effect ... while also indicating this was far from the last straw in their relationship, noting there were other "hurdles" before they split.

Childish Gambino's "This is America" is a blatant ripoff of a track that sounds similar, has a similar name and was all over the Internet almost 2 years before the rapper's smash hit was released ... so claims a musician in a new lawsuit.

Emelike Nwosuocha, a rapper who performs under the name Kidd Wes, is suing Childish Gambino, AKA Donald Glover, claiming he ripped off his song, "Made in America."

According to Kidd Wes ... he created his track on SoundCloud in September 2016 and released it on YouTube a couple months later, where people could listen to it for free. He says he also registered the song with the U.S Copyright Office in May 2017, and it was set to be the lead single on his upcoming album.

As you likely know ... Gambino's "This is America" was released in 2018, became incredibly popular and went on to win Grammy for Record of the Year.

According to the docs ... Kidd Wes claims the chorus, or hook, of "This is America" is "unmistakably substantially similar, if not practically identical" to his "Made in America."

Wes claims Gambino's "flow" is also substantially similar to his, and points to key lyrics in "Made in America" being similar to the hook's refrain in "This is America," for example:

"Made in America / Flex on the radio / Made me a terrorist / Pessimistic n***as / You should just cherish this"

Compared to this: "This is America / Guns in my area / I got the strap / I gotta carry 'em"

Kidd Wes claims there are also scientific similarities in the 2 tracks, and alleges it's not a coincidence -- he believes he was intentionally ripped off, and he wants major damages.

He's suing Gambino, the co-writers of "This is America," the record labels that put it out, Roc Nation, and even Young Thug ... who sings backup vocals on the track.

The mother of the Florida 6-year-old paddled by her principal had the tables turned on her -- as investigators grilled her kids about alleged neglect at home.

The family's attorney, Brent Probinsky, tells TMZ ... the little girl and 2 of her siblings -- plus a cousin for whom the mom cares -- were yanked out of class Tuesday by officials with the Florida Dept. of Children and Families, and questioned one by one.

Probinsky tells us this was done without the mother's knowledge, and he only learned about it after the fact when the Dept. came to him seeking to talk to the mom.

As for what all the fuss was about -- we're told the kids were asked if their mother is abusive in the home ... to which the children said no. Probinsky says the investigators then told him they wanted to follow up with the mother to ask why she didn't step in and intervene during her daughter's paddling.

Apparently, investigators were acting on a tip about the mom allegedly being neglectful -- but so far, there doesn't appear to be any evidence of that. Probinsky says it's an outrage law enforcement would come after the mom, when the real culprit's on camera in the paddling video.

As Probinsky previously explained -- there's a number of reasons the mom didn't step in ... for one, she's undocumented and was afraid of repercussions.

There was also a language barrier, and the mother didn't know what was about to happen.

Josh Duggar's friends and family told law enforcement he's dealing with a porn addiction ... according to the feds, who claim his computer was chock full of disturbing images.

The "19 Kids and Counting" star appeared over Zoom for a court hearing Wednesday in his child pornography case. During the hearing, an agent from the Dept. of Homeland Security said Josh's computer had more than 200 images involving naked minors and child sex abuse material. The agent said some of the children were as young as 5.

The feds say witnesses, including friends and family, brought up Josh's alleged addiction to porn in interviews with law enforcement.

However, Josh's defense asked the agent if there's evidence Duggar had looked at the alleged images, and the agent said he hadn't "directly" seen Josh checking out child porn.

TMZ broke the story ... Josh was hit with charges of receiving and possessing child porn following last month's arrest by federal agents in Arkansas. He's pled not guilty.

In Wednesday's court hearing, the feds claimed authorities identified a computer with videos and photos of child porn in May 2019 -- a few months later they claim they connected Josh to the computer using the IP address.

Remember, the Springdale, Arkansas car dealership where Josh works was raided by the feds in November 2019.

DHS agents seized a computer from Josh's office, plus his iPhone and a MacBook from inside an RV during that raid, and the feds say child porn was on the HP computer.

Josh, who is facing up to 20 years behind bars and fines of up to $250k on each count, wants to be released from jail, on bond, pending a trial ... claiming he's too famous to be a flight risk. The judge has yet to rule on that request.

Bill Gates lined his estranged wife's pocket with nearly $2 BILLION the very same day she filed for divorce ... and this revelation is a sign they were working out the property settlement long before the divorce announcement.

The transaction went down like this ... an investment firm controlled by Bill transferred millions of shares in two companies to Melinda Monday, the same day the billionaires announced the end of their marriage.

Bill's investment firm, Cascade Investment LLC, sent Melinda more than 14 million shares of Canadian National Railway Co. and more than 2.9 million shares of AutoNation Inc ... according to docs obtained by TMZ.

Based on Wednesday's stock prices, the shares are worth north of $1.8 billion ... including about $1.53 billion in Canadian National Railway shares and about $310 million on AutoNation shares.

As we first told you ... Melinda filed divorce docs that make it clear there's no prenup.

They signed a separation agreement ahead of the divorce filing, and the stock transfer indicates they are already down the road in dividing assets.

It'll be interesting to see how Bill and Melinda divvy up their assets ... and the billion-dollar stock transfer is the first clue.

Trey Songz walloped a bartender with his fist at a concert, then went right back to watching the show ... so the bartender claims in a new lawsuit.

The singer's being sued for battery by a man who says he was tending bar around midnight at the Hollywood Palladium on May 9, 2019 ... and claims Songz was part of the crowd.

According to the legal docs, obtained by TMZ, the bartender says Songz jumped on the bar to sit and watch the show ... which the bartender insists is against the venue's policy.

The bartender claims Songz ignored his warning that he wasn't allowed on the bar ... so he put his hand on Songz' back to get his attention, and tell him to get down.

That's when Songz allegedly turned around and struck the bartender in the head with a closed fist, looked at the other bartenders blankly, then continued watching the show ... according to the docs.

We did some digging and it seems like Songz was at the Palladium that evening for a Cardi B concert put on by Fashion Nova.

The bartender claims he suffered physical pain and emotional and psychological injury as a result of the alleged attack, and he's suing for damages. We reached out to Trey ... no word back yet.

Despite being hit with criminal charges in connection with the horrific death of a pregnant woman and her unborn child ... boxer Felix Verdejo WILL continue to have a contract with Top Rank as long he's not convicted -- so says Bob Arum.

The legendary boxing promoter explained the situation in an interview with WAPA-TV this week ... saying he has no plans to cut Verdejo at this time, even in light of the disturbing allegations against the 27-year-old.

"A man -- no matter how bad it looks -- is innocent until proven guilty," Arum says.

"And, we will not release him from the contract and terminate our relationship with him unless or until he's convicted."

While Arum's point is legitimate -- Verdejo's got a mountain to climb to avoid a conviction ... because there seems to be a ton of very compelling evidence against him as it relates to the death of 27-year-old Keishla Rodriguez and her unborn child.

Law enforcement says a witness has come forward and claimed he helped Verdejo kill the woman in Puerto Rico last week ... saying the boxer abducted her, punched her, injected her with foreign substances, and ultimately threw her off a bridge with a heavy block tied to her.

Law enforcement says cell phone data appears to corroborate the witness' story. Investigators also say they have surveillance video which appears to show a dark SUV at the scene of the crime similar to the one Verdejo had previously been spotted with.

Still, Arum says, "We're not going to release him until and unless he is convicted."

Verdejo surrendered to Puerto Rican authorities over the weekend ... and is currently being held without bail.

Puerto Rican newspaper El Vocero de Puerto Rico reports he's due in court on May 11 for a hearing in the case.

Terrifying incident involving cricket legend Stuart MacGill ... who was allegedly kidnapped and assaulted at gunpoint in Australia last month -- and cops have now arrested his girlfriend's brother over the incident.

50-year-old MacGill was reportedly confronted by 46-year-old Marino Sotiropoulos, the brother of MacGill's GF, Maria O’Meagher, on April 14 near Sydney ... according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

According to the report, while interacting with Sotiropoulos, MacGill was then approached by two other men ... who allegedly forced him into a car and drove him an hour outside of the city.

Cops say MacGill was beaten and threatened with a firearm for an hour straight upon arriving at a home in Bringelly ... suffering minor injuries.

According to cops, MacGill was then driven to Belmore -- another suburb of Sydney -- where he was ultimately released by the group.

The cricket legend reported the incident to police days later ... and the State Crime Command’s Robbery and Serious Crime Squad launched an investigation.

Officials believe the incident was financially motivated ... but say a ransom was not given and money was NOT exchanged.

Detective acting superintendent Anthony Holton told reporters Sotiropoulos was close to MacGill and believes his involvement to be an act of betrayal.

"I’d say the 46-year-old man’s involvement, we'll be alleging, was part of the facilitation of his kidnapping," Holton said, according to the Daily Telegraph.

Four individuals were arrested this week in the case -- Sotiropoulos, a 42-year-old man, a 29-year-old man, and a 27-year-old man.

According to the report, Sotiropoulos was charged with "detaining in company with intent to get advantage occasioning actual bodily harm, participating in a criminal group (contributing to criminal activity) and supplying a prohibited drug (large commercial quantity)."

The 42-year-old was charged with "knowingly directing the activities of a criminal group and detaining in company with intent to get advantage occasioning actual bodily harm."

Both the 27-year-old and 29-year-old were charged with participating in a criminal group (contributing to criminal activity) and detaining in company with intent to get advantage occasioning actual bodily harm.

All men were denied bail to appear in court on Wednesday.

MacGill played on the Australian national team from 1998-2008 ... appearing in 44 Test matches.

Chauvin's defense attorney is going to have a harder time of convincing a judge a new trial is warranted than he may think ... so says a noted law professor, Tamara Rice Lave.

Lave -- who teaches at the University of Miami School of Law -- came on "TMZ Live" Wednesday and explained why Brandon Mitchell going to the MLK rally in August actually wouldn't be grounds for a restart ... saying the devil is in the details on this one.

Watch ... she tells us the MLK event was NOT advertised as an anti-police demonstration, but simply a commemoration on Dr. King's historic March on Washington. The fact he was wearing a shirt that sympathizes with BLM is a footnote in her view, and one that wouldn't necessarily persuade an appellate judge to buck the trial court's ruling.

She also makes a good point about Mitchell's POV being communicated early and often -- he relayed that he supported BLM during questioning, and still wasn't ruled out at the time. And, as Lave notes, you can't just boot someone from a jury because of the color of their skin ... so, Chauvin's team might have their work cut out for them here.

The Derek Chauvin trial juror who was photographed at an MLK rally last year -- wearing a shirt with the words "Get your knee off our necks" -- will absolutely be a key factor in Chauvin's attempt to get a new trial ... TMZ has learned.

As you know, Chauvin's defense attorney Eric Nelson filed a motion Tuesday requesting a new trial. The docs made no specific mention of the juror, Brandon Mitchell, but did use the words "jury misconduct."

Sources familiar tell us the Mitchell issue is on the table and WILL be addressed during arguments in court to support the motion for a new trial.

If you missed it, Mitchell -- one of the only jurors from the trial who has since spoken out about the guilty verdict -- went to a BLM-organized rally last August in D.C. to commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 March on Washington. Mitchell was photographed there wearing a shirt with MLK's photo and the words ... a pretty clear reference to George Floyd's killing.

Also highly relevant is the fact George's family members spoke at the rally. Now, here's why this could be problematic.

Mitchell told the Star Tribune he answered "no" on the early jury questionnaire when asked 2 questions about attending demonstrations against police brutality -- one specific to Minneapolis, and one asking generally.

Now, Mitchell defended his answers, saying the rally was NOT a protest against police brutality, per se, or even in support of George Floyd, but more so geared toward MLK.

He told the Star Tribune, "I'd never been to D.C. The opportunity to go to D.C., the opportunity to be around thousands and thousands of Black people; I just thought it was a good opportunity to be a part of something."

That's his side of the story, but Chauvin's defense will certainly see it differently -- that Mitchell was an activist who had very clear bias when he became a juror.

Remember ... Mitchell has been very outspoken since the all-guilty verdict came in -- a verdict he says that he and his fellow jurors reached fairly easily ... once they sorted through some legal jargon in the instructions. He also said there was no pressure to vote guilty.

Britney Spears is itching to talk to the judge in her conservatorship case next month, but not to end the conservatorship ... it's all about giving her dad his walking papers.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Britney does not feel trapped in the 13-year-old conservatorship. As one source put it, "She has 99% of the freedom she'd have if she weren't in a conservatorship, and the only thing she's prevented from doing are crazy things, like buying 3 cars at a time [something she tried to do back in the day]."

Our sources say Britney has been free to travel -- she goes to Hawaii fairly often -- and lives her life in L.A. without real restrictions.

We're also told Britney is aware her life was out of control before the conservatorship was put in place, and it created a structure and also replenished her dwindling assets. As one source put it, "She's taken care of and she knows it."

Britney's problem is Jamie. We're told the two don't even speak anymore, and she's been angry at him for a long time over business issues and certain people Jamie embraced on the team ... people Britney doesn't like because she feels they were motivated not by her self-interest but theirs.

We're told Britney wants Jamie out as the co-conservator of her estate, managing her business affairs, and that's what she wants to talk to the judge about. She has no problem with the current conservatorship of her person. As we reported, Jodi Montgomery is now the permanent personal conservator of Britney, and the two get along.

Britney has said she will not perform again as long as Jamie is part of the conservatorship. That said, she's given no indication she wants to go back on stage and, in fact, has said she has other priorities.

Peloton is urging customers who bought its Tread+ and Tread machines to stop using the equipment and contact the company for a refund -- a move that comes after several reported injuries, and the alleged death of a child.

Peloton, along with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, announced the voluntary recall Wednesday, and the company's CEO John Foley apologized for not cooperating with the CPSC sooner.

The CPSC had previously warned about the Tread+ being unsafe for children and pets in mid-April, and Foley says, "I want to be clear, Peloton made a mistake in our initial response to the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s request that we recall the Tread+."

He adds ... "We should have engaged more productively with them from the outset. For that, I apologize."

Along with that mea culpa, Peloton has halted the sale and distribution of the Tread+ and is working on modifications to improve safety.

We broke the story ... Peloton was sued by a customer last month who claimed the treadmill's design made it "extremely susceptible" to children and pets getting trapped underneath the machine. The lawsuit alleged one kid had died in an incident involving the machine.

Silento insists he has a constitutional right to a reasonable bond in his felony murder case ... insisting he's not a flight risk.

The "Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)" rapper filed legal docs in DeKalb County, GA requesting the court set his bond at $25k. In docs, obtained by TMZ, Silento says he's “not an extraordinary bail risk and will not jeopardize the safety of the community if released on bail.”

He also assures the court that if the judge lets him out he won't flee or go into hiding. He promises to obey all court orders. Silento says denying him bond is not only unjust -- it's unconstitutional.

We'll soon know if the judge agrees with Silento ... a bond hearing's been set for later this month.

As we reported ... the rapper was arrested on February 1 for his alleged role in the death of his cousin, Frederick Rooks. Silento was charged with felony murder.

Cops said they found Rooks shot to death in the street on Jan. 21 ... and found 8 bullet casings at the scene. Silento's rep asked for positive thoughts for the rapper ... claiming he's been suffering from various mental health issues for several years.

Derek Chauvin's attorney says he deserves a new trial after the former Minneapolis police officer got convicted for murdering George Floyd.

Chauvin's attorney, Eric Nelson, filed legal docs Tuesday asking for the jury verdict in his murder trial to be thrown out, claiming there were numerous errors pertaining to the jury and prosecution.

In the docs, obtained by TMZ, Chauvin's defense claims he didn't get a fair shake ... alleging the court abused its discretion by disagreeing with defense requests to sequester the jury and change venue.

As we reported ... the judge presiding over Chauvin's murder trial said Rep. Maxine Waters may have given Chauvin additional arguments to make on appeal. Remember, the congresswoman from California had said protesters were banking on a guilty verdict. She encouraged people to take to the streets and get more confrontational if that didn't happen.

Of course, some took that as an incitement of violence. Chauvin's attorney brought up Waters' remarks after closing arguments and said her comments could have possibly influenced the jury.

Nelson had asked for a mistrial but Judge Cahill didn't bite ... but the judge did say Waters opened the door for Chauvin to appeal the verdict. The judge told Nelson he had faith jurors followed his directive to avoid the news and talk of the case.

Chauvin's defense claims the jury should have been sequestered or at least warned to avoid all media related to the case. Nelson claims jurors could have felt intimidated.

Chauvin, who pressed his knee on George Floyd's neck for more than 9 minutes back on May 25, 2020, was found guilty on all 3 counts, including 2nd-degree murder.

The maximum penalty for 2nd-degree unintentional murder is 40 years in prison. Chauvin, who will be sentenced in June, remains in custody.