“The Mighty Ducks” Star Brock Pierce Says Friend Stole His Puerto Rico Hotel: 'As Betrayed as One Can Get'

"He knew the hotel was like my heart,” the former child star told 'The New York Post'

Brock Pierce, a crypto entrepreneur and former child star, says his friend “outright” stole a Puerto Rico hotel from him, and he is suing for damages, he told The New York Post.

The Bitcoin Foundation chairman and Mighty Ducks alum, 43, told the outlet that businessman Joseph Lipsey III “fabricated a fictitious default” to “steal” the property, a closed resort on the island of Vieques, per a civil complaint obtained by The Post.

"He knew the hotel was like my heart,” Pierce, also a former presidential candidate, told the outlet. “I feel as betrayed as one can get.” Lipsey says the complaint is “baseless.”

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In 2021, the former child star allegedly paid $18.3 million for about an 80% stake in the resort, which was damaged by Hurricane Maria four years prior, per The Post.

Then, last month, Lipsey gained control of the property by claiming Pierce defaulted on a loan from his company, according to the civil lawsuit.

Lipsey loaned Pierce $10 million in October so he could buy out the hotel’s minority partners, per the lawsuit.

A month later, Lipsey seized the property, claiming that his former friend missed a transaction deadline, which Pierce denied to The Post.

“He says we didn’t send him a copy of the paperwork on time,” the former child star said.

According to Pierce, the loan agreement gave Lipsey the right to manage the holding company that controls the resort if Pierce defaulted, but he ignored a 30-day legal process he was supposed to go through to transfer the property to himself.

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If the legal battle goes his way, Pierce wants to continue with his plan for the hotel, opening it as soon as 2025, he told The Post.

“Everyone is still working on renovating the hotel. But I don’t know for how much longer,” he told the outlet, adding that “what Lipsey did is potentially fatal.”

Pierce is suing Lipsey to get the court to reverse the transfer, he told The Post. He is also seeking $80 million in damages from his ex-friend, Bloomberg reported.

Speaking with Bloomberg, Lipsey called Pierce’s allegations “baseless,” and said the property transfer was entirely legal.

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The estranged pals met in Puerto Rico, where Pierce has lived since 2017 and where Lipsey relocated in 2021 with his family.

“His wife became friends with my mother before she passed away,” Pierce told The Post. “Joseph came to me after she died and said I promised your mom I’d be there to help you.”

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