Celebrity News

Elle ‘part of chopper crash conspiracy’

Miami billionaire Jeffrey Soffer has been hit with a stunning $100 million lawsuit claiming he was at the controls of the helicopter that crashed last year in the Bahamas, killing his best friend, Lance Valdez.

Dasha and Lance Valdez.Jason Binn/WireImage

The lawsuit, filed Monday night in Miami’s Federal District Court, alleges Soffer, who does not have a helicopter pilot license, was flying the chopper when it crashed on Great Guana Cay on Thanksgiving Day, 2012. Tax lawyer and father-of-three Valdez, 48, died immediately.
The bombshell lawsuit alleges Soffer — who owns Miami’s Fontainebleau hotel and is married to Elle Macpherson — failed to tell his fellow passengers he didn’t have chopper license and conducted a fly-by of his luxury home and yacht before crashing the aircraft.
Valdez’s widow, Dasha, further claims in the suit that Soffer “conspired” to persuade her to accept $2 million in insurance money without telling her he had been at the controls, and to sign a release so he would escape greater damages. She also claims Soffer coerced the pilot to sign a statement saying he was flying the chopper at the time of the crash, and offered to pay him $10,000 a month “indefinitely”.

Dasha further claims in the lawsuit that Soffer’s powerful friends including Roger Penske helped him leave the crash site immediately, and even supermodel Macpherson was involved in the “conspiracy” by making calls to friends to persuade the grieving widow to sign the release.
Even though a licensed pilot, David Pearce, was on board, the suit reads, “At the time of the crash, the helicopter was being piloted by Jeffrey Soffer. Soffer was not licensed to fly. [Nor was he a] sufficiently experienced helicopter pilot.”

The suit claims that Soffer “advised Valdez” that he was a licensed helicopter pilot, and had asked to take the controls to their destination at the private Bakers Bay club on Great Guana Cay in Abacos, Bahamas.
However it claims public records show Soffer only holds a license for airplanes, according to the papers, which continue, “Soffer took over the controls [of the helicopter], made radio contact…and piloted and flew the helicopter continuously until the helicopter crash.”
The papers describe the dramatic moments before the crash, “Just before he approached the proposed landing site, Soffer navigated the helicopter over Bakers Bay golf course, and pointed out his house and his yacht.
“In a clearing near Baker’s Bay, Soffer attempted to land the helicopter…Due to his lack of experience in piloting the Aerospatiale Twin Star..he approached the landing site too quickly, ultimately taking a low and direct path that would not be typical for an experienced helicopter pilot.”

The suit continues, “Due to his inexperience…Soffer pulled back too sharply on the controls, causing the helicopter to spin out of control and rear backwards some 75 feet, causing it to crash violently into the ground…breaking the tail and the tail rotor assembly, killing Lance Valdez.”
Dasha, who is seeking $100 million for wrongful death and “fraudulent inducement”, has filed the lawsuit against Soffer and his employees Daniel and Paula Riordan, who were also on board and escaped death. Also named is Soffer’s COO, Alex Krys who was not on board.
The lawsuit alleges “that Soffer, together with the Riordans, Krys and one or more others, conspired and otherwise agreed to conceal from [Dasha] the fact and circumstance that Soffer, and not David Pearce, was flying the helicopter at the time of the helicopter crash.
“The purpose of this concealment and deception was, in turn, to induce [Dasha] to accept $2 million in insurance proceeds . . . as full damages and recompense for the death of Lance. If it was discovered that Soffer was piloting the helicopter without a license, he could be personally liable and responsible to the Plaintiffs for the death of Lance Valdez.”
Soffer fled the scene immediately after the crash and arranged for his billionaire friend and race team owner Penske to fly him and the Riordans out of the Bahamas by private jet, according to the suit.
It claims, “While Lance Valdez’ broken and seemingly lifeless body was still lying on the ground…Soffer arranged to have himself and the Riordans transplanted by boat to the Marsh Harbor airport in order to escape, flee and/or remove himself and the Riordans from the Bahamas before any investigation of the crash could be conducted..so that he could, at least temporarily prevent anyone from investigating and learning that he was flying the helicopter at the time of the crash…Penske facilitate the flight of Soffer and the Riordans to Miami on his private jet.”

The suit later adds Soffer “made exigent arrangements to flee…to avoid being questioned [by the Royal Bahamas Police] about….the helicopter crash and who was flying the helicopter.” It also claims Soffer “secreted” himself from the ensuing inquiry by the police, the Bahamas Department of Civil Aviation and the US NTSB.
The licensed pilot on board David Pearce suffered head injuries including temporary blindness, according to the suit, and was left behind by Soffer next to the wreckage, and was forced to crawl to find help, before he was dragged to a building by a ‘good samaritan’, according to the papers.
The day following the crash, Pearce was visited by Dasha, Valdez’s brother Frank Valdez and family friend, wealthy scion Jamie Dingman, “Pearce told all of them he wasn’t flying the helicopter at the time of the crash, but rather stated, that Soffer had piloted the helicopter,” the suit claims.
Soffer called Dasha a few days later claiming that the pilot “had crazy hair and looked very strange,” so he had piloted the helicopter for the flight, but returned the controls to Pearce for the landing. “He [Soffer] told [Dasha] that prior to landing, the pilot lost control, and that everything happened so fast, repeatedly bemoaning that he couldn’t believe Lance was dead,” the suit reads, adding he then dispatched his employee Krys to the Bahamas to visit Dasha and urge her to seek the insurance claim an sign the release.
The papers claim that Krys insisted it was “critically important” to get Pearce to sign a statement that he was flying the helicopter at the time of the crash, and said “Soffer would take care of Pearce,” offering him a job as a mechanic in his aviation company at a salary up to $10,000 a month “indefinitely…to induce his signature”. The suit adds Pearce, “Reluctantly agreed to sign.”
Valdez’s grieving wife Dasha (also known as Daria) was urged to sign a release accepting the $2 million insurance money, the papers claim, “This was…the purpose of the conspiracy between Soffer, the Riordans and Krys – to have Daria…pursue an insurance recovery…and have her execute a release in favor of Soffer, despite the fact they knew that Soffer was flying the helicopter at the time of the crash, and by virtue of his own negligence, was responsible for Lance’s death.”
It is claimed that Soffer had mutual friends and business associates “call Dasha repeatedly to further pressure her to sign the release.” She was threatened that the insurance offer would be withdrawn “and she would end up with nothing,” and Krys also told her, “You are an idiot if you do not sign the release.”
The stunning papers go on to say that Elle Macpherson, who was a friend of Daria [Dasha] and is now Soffer’s wife, even urged her to sign. The papers read, “Soffer induced…Elle Macpherson…to call Charles Holzer, another close friend of both Lance and Daria, and told him that Soffer was annoyed about Daria’s delay in signing the release, telling Holzer that ‘Soffer doesn’t have to do this you know’.”
Under such “coercive pressure” and “coping with the grief of the loss of the love of her life, Daria signed the release,” in March 2013, and “notably, after Daria signed the release, Soffer stopped calling as he had before to find out how she and the kids were doing.”
The lawsuit concludes, “Despite being responsible for the loss of his friend, Soffer repeatedly lied to and intentionally deceived Daria about his involvement in the crash in an effort to persuade her to pursue an insurance recovery rather than a claim against him…Soffer told Daria that he was her friend and that his greatest concern was her well-being and that of her minor children. However nothing could have been farther from the truth. Instead he was primarily concerned with avoiding both his financial responsibility for his negligence…and the prospect of widespread adverse notoriety and ridicule that would most certainly result…Soffer wanted a signed release..and to achieve that release from liability he was willing to deceive the surviving family members of his close friend Lance Valdez, and to enlist Krys and the Riordans in that effort.
“They knew Daria was beset with grief…at the time that they inappropriately pressured her to sign a release they knew was based upon false information…they took undue and improper advantage of her and the situation and circumstances surrounding the helicopter crash.”
Soffer’s attorney Bob Martinez told Page Six in a statement, “Jeff Soffer is very sympathetic to Daria [Dasha] and the children for their grave loss. He still mourns deeply the death of his good friend Lance Valdez. The Riordan’s and Mr. Soffer were seriously injured in the accident and are still on a long road to full recovery.
“Throughout the post-accident period, Mr. Valdez’ wife was represented by several lawyers, including two of the top aviation accident specialists in the nation, who investigated fully the facts of the accident and the applicable law and advised Mrs. Valdez to sign the Release. The children were also well represented by another top aviation accident specialist who served as their Guardian Ad Litem, who also investigated the facts of the accident and the law, and who recommended to the trial judge that the Court approve the settlement, which the judge did.
“Mr. Soffer denies all the allegations of wrongdoing contained in the complaint. They are all without any merit. Mr. Soffer has no further comments to make at this time since the lawsuit is now pending in federal court, where he will be presenting his defense.”

Gogoleva v Soffer Et Al