(Photo: Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports via Reuters)
Tennis dad Richard Williams, who has dementia, has been subjected to elder abuse by his separated wife Lakeisha Graham, and his renowned daughters Venus and Serena have done nothing to stop it, a new report claimed.
The startling claims were revealed in a bankruptcy case concerning former stripper Lakeisha's intention to sell the court queens' childhood home.
“Richard is in no position to take care of his own affairs any longer. You have to wonder how Venus and Serena have allowed him to be taken advantage of like this,” an unnamed source told The National Enquirer.
Lakeisha's bankruptcy filing was denied by a Florida judge, forcing her to sell the court icons' childhood home when issues arose over the authenticity of their 82-year-old father's signature on the property.
Richard's Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., home, which he bought for $355,000 in 1995, is now being sold to pay off Lakeisha's debt, which is estimated to be more than $600,000. Lakeisha has acknowledged to forging his signature on title paperwork in order to transfer ownership and obtain a $279,000 loan, which she used to fund a failing trucking venture and "frivolities."
“And that’s not the first time she dipped into Richard’s pockets to bail herself out,” the insider claimed.
Court filings in Richard's divorce proceedings from 2017 revealed a series of claims against Lakeisha, as per The Sun. She has also acknowledged to forging Richard's signature in order to sell his beloved 1999 Bluebird Wanderlodge Motor Coach, which is worth $45,000.
“I was broke and my husband did not help me,” Lakeisha complained, stating that Richard was not providing financial assistance for her or their eight-year-old son, Dylan. He refuted her assertions.
While Venus and Serena have not talked publicly about their father's difficult divorce, another of his nine children, son Chavoita LeSane, has alleged Lakeisha fabricated additional paperwork, stole Social Security checks, and other items from his reduced father.
Chavoita, Lakeisha's love child, has vowed to sue her for elder abuse, but nothing has come of it. “We’re just putting all of it together. It’s a lot. This whole situation has been frustrating,” he said.
It remains to be seen whether tennis greats Venus and Serena will play a more active part in their father's case.
“They are among the richest and most powerful women in the history of sports. They should never have allowed their father to get in this situation in the first place,” the informant stated.
Business Times has reached out to Serena Williams for comments.
