SERENA Willaims’ stepmother could lose the home she “stole” from the tennis star’s father Richard – after falling short in her debt repayment plan by thousands of dollars. Lakeisha Williams racked up over $600,000 worth of debt, and the former couple locked horns over Serena and sister Venus’s childhood home in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.The disputed property has fallen into disrepair, but Lakeisha had the roof fixed in recent months and still lives there. Richard’s ex admitted she faked his signature on the title deeds of the $1.4million home and took out a $279,000 mortgage, before blowing the cash on a failed trucking business and “fast-food and frivolities,” according to court filings.
He was previously battling to get the home back with the aim of knocking it down and rebuilding on the land, or selling it, his son Chavoita LeSane previously told The U.S. Sun. Lender David Simon has been pursuing Lakeisha through the courts for his home loan plus interest – which stood at around $623,000 – and she previously failed to keep up with any repayment plan as she attempted to declare herself bankrupt three times. New court documents show Lakeisha has been making a major effort to keep the four-bed property, showing she has repaid $171,486 over the last 17 months.However, the former stripper fell $13,197 short of the plan target, while her lawyer is arguing it was an honest mistake and Lakeisha wasn’t aware of the shortage. If she doesn’t keep up with the plan, then her bid to be protected by the bankruptcy court will be tossed out and she will have to sell the house to pay her creditors. Attorney Elias Dsouza said that “the debtor is a single mother who drives a semi-truck to earn a living. Suffice to say she is not one of the more sophisticated kind of debtor, and to her detriment relies on others to inform her of the plan payments.”
BANKRUPTCY TERMS
Dsouza is asking the US bankruptcy court that the shortfall be added onto her five-year plan, which means paying $9,161 for 18 months, then $13,308 for one month, and $12,731 for the next 41 months. The case is due to be heard by the judge on September 7. Richard bought the home in 1995 for $355,000 with Serena’s mom, Oracene, before they split in 2002, and he retained the property as part of the divorce deal. The U.S. Sun previously revealed he is now living in a one-story property not far away, which is owned by Serena, who paid $815,000 for the home in June 2015. The pad is perfect for the elderly former tennis coach who has had previous health problems as it’s all on one floor, with four bedrooms, five bathrooms, and more than 4,160 square feet of room. Lakeisha, 44, and Richard, 81, have been trying to finalize their divorce for more than six years, with Serena’s dad previously telling The U.S. Sun he was desperate to get it signed off. But his son Chavoita admits Lakeisha is still trying to reunite with his dad and is still living in his home with her rumored “aunt” Betty.
REUNION ATTEMPT
She posted two photos of her and Richard together on Instagram in May, which shows them driving on a family day out with their young son Dylan and then posing arm-in-arm. Until those posts, Richard hadn’t been seen for years on Lakeisha’s social media pages.Richard and Chavoita spoke exclusively to The U.S. Sun earlier this year to claim that her fraud extends to cashing social security checks and stealing his cars, with Lakeisha admitting in court testimony to selling one Bluebird motor home, alleging it was because Richard left her and Dylan with no food. The U.S. Sun has made numerous attempts to reach Lakeisha for further comment. Chavoita said: “I can’t remember how long it was into the relationship as far as my dad starting to have financial headaches, like, ‘What’s going on with my social security checks?’ “Lakeisha took the Mercedes, she took the bus, she took money, what else was it? The motorcycle.
