50 Cent Files Legal Complaint Against Beam Suntory Alleging ‘Extraordinarily Troubling’ $6M Embezzlement Scheme
50 Cent is taking legal action against the spirits giant, Beam Suntory, over allegations of a $6 million embezzlement scheme from his Sire Spirits Brand. (Photo: Sthanlee B. Mirador/Sipa USA)(Sipa via AP Images)
Fox 5 New York reported on Monday that Curtis James Jackson III, better known as 50 Cent, is taking the spirits giant, Beam Suntory, to court over accusations of an embezzlement scheme of over $6 million.
Beam Suntory denies any role in the purported embezzlement scheme and is fighting against Sire Spirits, 50 Cent’s liquor business, in court.
The multi-hyphenate and entrepreneur owns Sire Spirits, which produces brands like Branson Cognac and Le Chemin du Roi champagne.
According to Fox 5 New York, 50 Cent filed a 70-page complaint with the New York State Supreme Court against Beam Suntory and two individuals allegedly previously affiliated with the company, Julious Grant and Michael Caruso. In the complaint, 50 Cent claimed the spirits giant embezzled over $6 million from Sire Spirits by overcharging the company and splitting the difference in the profits, Fox 5 New York reported.
Sire Spirits’ attorney, Craig Weiner, claims that the brand overpaid on customs, duties, insurance and taxes.
“Beam Suntory’s role here is extraordinarily troubling,” Weiner said, according to Fox 5 New York. “Beam Suntory’s Chief Commercial Officer, a gentleman by the name of Julious Grant, acting as an employee, as an officer of the company, acting under the actual and parent authority of Beam Suntory facilitated the entire fraud as we plead in our complaint.”
Yet Beam Suntory claimed in a Motion to Dismiss that Michael Caruso was never an employee of the company, and that Grant, the executive who worked for Beam at the time, broke his fiduciary duty to the company and was receiving payments from Caruso’s consulting company under Beam’s nose while the company remained none the wiser.
Beam Suntory “vehemently denies” allegations of wrongdoing, according to a statement submitted to Fox 5. In May, Beam Suntory requested portions of five documents to be redacted in the case, citing sensitive “financial information.” The judge granted the request in a four-page document.
50 Cent has taken to the social sphere to share his side of the story. The entrepreneur has shared multiple Instagram posts from various outlets reporting on the issue, and it appears Beam Suntory is remaining mum about the situation. One caption read the following:
“It was due yesterday now im gonna need a double by monday. @beamsuntory @jimbeamofficial somebody should’ve told you about me.”
Beam Suntory appeared to have turned off its comments on Instagram as of Thursday.
In an Instagram post dated March 12, 50 Cent shared with his 3 million followers the photo of a letter Beam Suntory allegedly sent to the individuals who were accused of the embezzlement scheme.
The letter featured on 50 Cent’s Instagram page. The “Candy Shop” rapper shared it with his 31.3 million followers. (Photo: 50 Cent/Instagram)
Beam Suntory remains steadfast in proclaiming it kept everything above board with the spirits entrepreneur.
“[Beam Suntory] had no involvement in or knowledge of the fraudulent activity alleged in the complaint, and any allegation to the contrary has no basis in fact,” the company behind brands like Maker’s Mark and Jim Beam claimed. “It is undisputed that we honored all prior obligations to Mr. Jackson and Sire Spirits, and it is very unfortunate that all the parties involved continue to misrepresent facts and misdirect blame in an attempt to recover fees and damages.”
50’s attorney wasn’t convinced:
“I question where was your compliance program? How did they get away with Mr. Grant receiving payments under the scheme for years and years. Where were you? How did you allow this to happen? This is a heavily regulated industry,” Weiner said, according to Fox 5 New York.
Fox reports the case is set to go before a jury in 2025 and 50 shows no sign of backing down.
According to Entrepreneur, 50 Cent claims “there are more ruthless people in business than in the streets.”
“At least with a robbery, they’ll give you the courtesy of showing you the gun, so you can have those anxieties and feel those feelings that you would feel when you’re being robbed,” he said. “But [in business] they’ll do it on a piece of paper. They’ll do it in a way where you feel nothing — and just rob you right there.”
“The last person he sued, 50 ended up [with] that man’s house & left all the family pics up. I wouldn’t play with 50’s level of petty,” an individual commented on an Instagram post about the case from 50 Cent.
The “last person” that individual is referring to is likely Mitchell Green. In March 2023, 50 Cent took Green to court over claims of embezzlement.
Green ended up confessing to embezzling from 50 Cent after he was allegedly blackmailed. When 50 Cent got word of the situation and found out Green made $2.2 million from his scheme, he fired Green immediately and took him to court. Green was ordered to pay $6.2 million to the rapper but subsequently filed for bankruptcy.
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