Neverland is still scheduled to be auctioned: will it be saved?

the auction of Michael Jackson's ranch may be forestalled by a loan extension offered by his loan holder Fortress Investments.

Jackson's attorney L. Londell McMillan told the Associated Press Thursday such a deal was in the works. But it's not done yet. There's still no recording at the Santa Barbara County Assessor's Office. Until that's changed, Jackson remains in foreclosure.

Neverland Scam: A 'Thriller'

On Wednesday, I told you that Jackson's Neverland Ranch and its $23 million lien are part of a weird sequence of events. This included a California investor's putting $46 million into escrow for Neverland, thinking he was dealing with Jackson’s representatives.

He wasn’t. And the investor just narrowly avoided being bilked for close to $5 million.

How did this all start? It turns out the investor’s rep, Jason Cestaro, got involved based on information sent to him right from the office of Jackson’s former manager, Raymone Bain, in February.

Cestaro, sources say, asked for and received crucial personal financial information about Jackson to make the decision to loan him so much money.

Cestaro, I’ve now learned, depended on a letter he was shown Feb. 13 on stationery that simply read at the top: Michael J. Jackson. It was signed by Diane Simmons Williams, a certified public accountant who not only was the wife of ex-District of Columbia Mayor Anthony Williams, but billed herself as a "Financial Consultant" to Jackson.

What Cestaro didn’t know is Williams also is an employee of Bain, which is how she had access to sensitive information about Jackson.

The notarized letter was presented to Cestaro by Kevin D. Kinsey, a Los Angeles finance rep, as evidence of Jackson’s income.

It was addressed "To whom it may concern" and outlined Jackson’s income as almost $30 million a year, including $5 million royalties from "Sony’s Records" and $11 million from Jackson’s stake in Sony/ATV Music Publishing.

Jackson’s other income, Williams stated in the letter, included between $3 million and $4 million from BMI (airplays) royalties and $10 million to $11 million generated by Jackson’s MiJac Publishing, a separate entity.

Cestaro was thrilled to learn this, I’m told, but concerned that the letter was old. It was dated July 11, 2007. He called Williams, whose phone number was at the bottom of the letter, asking for an updated version. She balked and recommended he speak with one of Bain’s assistants, who put him off to another.

Nevertheless, Cestaro deposited the $46 million in escrow as an act of good faith.

Cestaro would not learn until later that Williams’ letter misrepresented Jackson’s finances: She’d omitted all that Sony income, plus the MiJac was being paid — but not to Jackson. It was going directly to paying off more than $330 million in loans secured by MiJac Publishing. Jackson had no access to it as actual cash, which was implied.

Several phone calls and e-mails to Williams on Wednesday went unreturned to this column, including two to the office of her husband.

In the meantime, despite the insistence of everyone involved, Neverland still is scheduled to be auctioned on March 19 in Santa Barbara, Calif. The Notice of Trustee’s Sale, first posted on the county’s Web site by Fortress Investments on Feb. 25, remains active.
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