Hollywood hunk Brad Pitt is being hammered by critics who charge his Make It Right Foundation built shoddy homes in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina decimated the city in 2005 — and now sources fear $65 million has been mishandled!
After the killer storm leveled the Crescent City, bighearted Brad, 58, assembled a team to rebuild houses for displaced residents in the historic Lower Ninth Ward district.
However, the ambitious project has since been dogged by claims the homes aren’t up to scratch and contain sickeningly high levels of carbon dioxide and toxic mold!
And the foundation’s latest tax returns show its finances are also in disrepair — with less than $250,000 in net assets and $1.9 million in losses!
Unhappy locals in the revamped residences say they have no way to contact the nonprofit because its website is down, the phone number displayed on its Facebook page is disconnected and its offices have been seemingly abandoned.
Ron Austin filed a $20 million class-action lawsuit on behalf of homeowners against the foundation, its insurers and executives — including the Fight Club star.
Lloyd Francis and Jennifer Decuir, who are part of the suit, insist their properties have structural issues and claim their homes have made them sick!
Austin tells The National ENQUIRER, “Mr. Pitt enjoys a lot of positive publicity, but a lot of these residents feel abandoned and forgotten.”
Make It Right’s recent filing at the Civil District Court in the Parish of Orleans shows a cross-claim in Austin’s legal action against the organization’s former staffers, including executive director Thomas Darden III.
The filing, made by the law firm Fishman Haygood LLP, blames ex-employees for mismanaging $65 million of “raised funds from individuals, corporations, state and federal grants” earmarked for construction of 150 energy-efficient properties after the hurricane hit.
The papers claim up until 2016 those staffers had control of the purse strings and hoodwinked directors and the board, including Pitt, into believing houses were being built on time, on budget and with the right materials!
That filing says there once was enough dough to build 150 homes by 2010, but accuses execs of stalling and lying to other foundation directors.
As a result, Make It Right claims ham-fisted staffers are solely liable for any potential damages suffered by homeowners. But it’s unclear where and how the foundation’s cash was spent. However an attorney representing Darden and some of his associates insists they did not “mismanage” foundation funds or “breach” any duties to the organization.
While the case works its way through the courts, Make It Right is behind on its mandatory nonprofit disclosures. However paperwork filed in May 2021 for 2018 operations shows about $2 million in loses!
Meanwhile, Pitt’s lawyers say the Oscar-winning superstar can’t be held “legally responsible” for any damages and insist he acted “in good faith” when he launched the rebuilding effort. Brad’s rep declined to comment to The ENQUIRER.
Despite Pitt’s intentions, residents say they’re stuck holding the bag for crumbling homes.
Kamaria Allen’s Make It Right house was demolished in October 2020 after sitting empty for nine years due to “advanced mold rot caused by a chronic moisture condition.”
She reached a settlement with the foundation and signed a nondisclosure agreement.
But now she’s speaking out on behalf of her mother, Sharon, 67, and father, Keith, 65 — who are part of the class-action lawsuit — and claim their Make It Right home made them ill!
Kamaria says, “My parents live in a very damp and moist atmosphere — on top of it being contaminated with quite high levels of carbon dioxide.
“Make It Right didn’t believe it. They hired their own specialists, who diagnosed the quality of the home can cause disease in animals and humans.
“My parents are very miserable. I have talked to them about moving. But you know, when you’re at a certain age, it’s hard to start over. For my father, he lost everything when he was a young kid to Hurricane Betsy. Hurricane Katrina, he lost everything. Now we’re in Hurricane Make It Right.”
