Erik von Detten, former Disney star, sued for alleged elder abuse, fraud
Erik von Detten at the premiere of "Junction" held at Harmony Gold on January 24, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Credit: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES - Erik von Detten, a former Disney child star, is facing allegations of fraud and financial elder abuse in a lawsuit filed by a California couple who claim he persuaded them to spend more than $2.3 million of their retirement and family-trust funds on gold coins that were worth substantially less than what they paid.
Von Detten is best known for his roles in Disney's "Brink!" and "The Princess Diaries."
Erik Von Detten sued for elder abuse
Big picture view:
According to court documents obtained by FOX News Digital, Sheila Greenberg, 85, and her husband, Norman Greenberg, 97, filed the lawsuit against von Detten and his former employer, Rosland Capital, in Los Angeles County Superior Court.
Rosland is a company that buys and sells precious metals. According to the complaint, the Greenbergs believe Rosland’s marketing campaigns were "designed in large part to appeal to senior citizens through their television and internet advertising, direct mail brochures, and high-pressure boiler-room type sales practices."
According to the lawsuit, the couple explained to von Detten that they did not know a lot about gold but told him they had about $2 million in their retirement accounts. The Greenbergs said von Detten impressed them with his knowledge about gold and said he could help them.
"Von Detten earned Sheila’s and Norman's trust. They believed him to be an expert and thus placed their faith completely in Von Detten to make the correct choices and recommendations and expressed as much to him," the court documents state.
Greenbergs invest more than $2 million
Timeline:
On Oct. 19, 2020, the Greenbergs allegedly followed von Detten’s recommendations and purchased more than $999,000 worth of Lady Liberty gold coins. The lawsuit claims Sheila paid $599,654.83 for 797 coins, while Norman paid $399,519.09 for 531 coins.
"They believed that, however valued, Von Detten was taking care of them and the price they paid was a fair price for what they bought and the gold they purchased was worth the money they spent. Afterall, this was an IRA rollover. An investment intended to protect their hard-earned wealth for retirement."
The lawsuit claims the couple lost more than $367,000 in value almost immediately after the first transaction.
The Greenbergs allege von Detten continued contacting them and "hounded" them to invest even more money. The complaint claims Rosland "likely" viewed the couple as a "whale" after learning how much money they had available.
On Nov. 5, 2020, the couple allegedly made another purchase totaling more than $1.14 million. Sheila reportedly bought 885 additional coins for $677,644.50, while Norman purchased 614 coins for $470,139.80.
The lawsuit claims the second transaction resulted in another immediate loss of more than $418,000.
After the retirement accounts were "depleted," the complaint alleges Rosland pursued other sources of money. In August 2021, the Greenbergs allegedly used their family trust to purchase nearly $200,000 worth of additional gold coins.
The lawsuit also alleges the physical coins were never delivered to the Greenbergs. Instead, they were sent to Delaware Depository for storage. The couple claims they continued paying fees to maintain their gold IRA accounts and store the coins.
Rosland Capital filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July, about seven weeks after the lawsuit was filed.
Couple claims $900k in damages
What's next:
In the end, the couple claims to have suffered $900k in damages. They're looking to recover their losses and want the court to tack on punitive damages on top, as well.
The Source: This story was reported from Los Angeles. TMZ, FOX News contributed.