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Everybody hurts: Seven tragic stories involving the super rich
Possessing great wealth is no shield against heartache. Here are sad stories of suicide, scandal, murder and ruin.
In 2011, Forbes dubbed Aubrey McClendon, who was then CEO of natural gas powerhouse Chesapeake Energy, “America’s Most Reckless Billionaire” and put him on the cover.
“We have found something that can liberate us from the influence of OPEC, that can put several million Americans back to work, liberate us from $4 gasoline,” McClendon once said. “Is it too good to be true? Sometimes it seems that way.”
McClendon made wild bets on oil and natural gas, used tons of leverage and in 2008 was forced to sell nearly all his shares in Chesapeake to meet margin calls; the company also had to write down billions.
Even as Chesapeake tried heroically to rebound, acquiring and developing vast new shale formations responsible for boosting gas supplies to all-time highs, some thought he was overpaid and that the company would do better without him, leading to him getting booted from the company he built in 2013.
The Department of Justice began investigating him in 2012, and on Tuesday March 1, McClendon was indicted by federal prosecutors on charges of conspiracy to rig bids for oil and gas leases.
“The charge that has been filed against me today is wrong and unprecedented,” said McClendon. The next day McClendon died when the Chevy Tahoe he was driving crashed at high speed against an embankment in Oklahoma City.
While police have not yet concluded whether the crash was a result of a suicide attempt, what happened to McClendon underscores what many have long known: Being rich doesn’t shield you from tragedy.
Perhaps no one better illustrates the heartbreak better than former German billionaire Adolf Merckle. Merckle’s fortune unraveled in 2009 when a bad bet on Volkswagen stock and a spiraling debt load threatened to dismantle his business empire.
He was found on train tracks near his German home; his family confirmed he had committed suicide. A year before his death, FORBES had pegged his net worth at $9.2 billion.
Since then, his son Ludwig has restructured the family business, sold some assets, paid down the debts and is now worth $5.1 billion.
Otto Beisheim, another German billionaire, also took his own life in 2013 after long suffering an undisclosed, incurable disease. At its peak, his fortune was worth $3.3 billion, due to his 10% stake in retailer Metro, which was the third largest in Europe at the time of his death.
There’s much heartache among the world’s wealthiest that is not self-inflicted. One of the most haunting tales involved the storied Getty family. In 1973, the patriarch of the Getty clan, J. Paul, found out that his grandson J. Paul III, had been taken by Italian gangsters.
The eldest Getty didn’t want to negotiate, and when the kidnappers lost their patience, they cut off J. Paul III’s ear and sent it back to his family as a threat. In response, the family sent $3.4 million to the kidnappers, and J. Paul III was returned but faced a tragic end.
Heavy drug use gave him a stroke, which left him paralyzed and nearly blind for the rest of his life. He died in 2011 after spending three decades confined to a wheelchair.
Drug addiction has also touched many wealthy homes. Former billionaire oilman T Boone Pickens, for example, lost a 21-year-old grandson to a heroin overdose in 2013. The 18-year-old daughter of timeshare king David Siegel, who FORBES estimates has a $940 million fortune, also died in 2015 from an accidental overdose.
The daughter-in-law of Hans Rausing, a Swedish packaging giant heir, died of a drug overdose in 2012. Hans’s son, Hans-Kristian, kept her body in a bedroom for eight weeks.
Hans-Kristian was later quoted as saying he didn’t want her to leave yet.
He was given a suspended sentence after he pled guilty to preventing his wife’s decent and lawful burial and agreeing to a two-year drug rehabilitation. He has since remarried and appears to have put his drug problems behind him.
Hans Kristian Rausing
Hans-Kristian Rausing is an heir to a Swedish packaging fortune. His first wife died after a drug overdose, and Hans-Kristian kept her body in a bedroom for eight weeks. He was later quoted as saying he didn’t want her to leave yet.
E Joe Shoen
Joe Shoen runs family trucking company U-Haul. A bitter feud tore the family apart, starting when eldest son Sam's wife was brutally murdered. Sam blames Joe and other brother Mark, who still deny any involvement.
Aubrey McClendon
In 2011, Forbes dubbed Aubrey McClendon, who was then CEO of natural gas powerhouse Chesapeake Energy, “America's Most Reckless Billionaire” and put him on the cover. This week, he died in a one-car crash, just a day after being indicted by federal prosecutors.
Otto Beisheim
Founder of retail giant Metro, Otto Beisheim died as one of Germany's richest people. He reportedly took his own life at 89 years old after long suffering from an undisclosed incurable illness.
Adolf Merckle
German billionaire Adolf Merckle was a German billionaire industrialist who suffered huge losses when share price bets he made went badly wrong. His family said he committed suicide in 2009. Before his death, he had been negotiating with banks for a bridging loan of 400 million euros to save his empire.
Robert Durst
New York real estate fortune heir and murder suspect Robert Durst was arrested in 2015, after implicated himself in three murders during taping for an HBO documentary.
T. Boone Pickens
T. Boone Pickens, chief executive officer of BP Capital Management, is a former billionaire oilman. A 21-year-old grandson died due to a heroin overdose in 2013.
Source: Forbes
