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SALT LAKE CITY — A Nevada attorney has filed a lawsuit in Utah after an apparent deal to buy rapper Post Malone's multimillion-dollar Bugatti sports car went south.
In a breach of contract lawsuit filed Wednesday in Utah's federal court, Steven Dimopoulos, an attorney based in Las Vegas, is seeking $75,000 and the rights to buy Post Malone's 2019 Bugatti Chiron from Excalibur Motors, a Montana company, and Die Trying Auto Brokers, a company based in West Valley City that is registered to Josh Ayers. Ayers is also named as a defendant in the lawsuit.
Post Malone — whose real name is Austin Post — made headlines after he purchased a home near Cottonwood Heights in years past, and has spoken publicly about how he enjoys residing in the Beehive State. The Bugatti at the heart of the lawsuit was used in a music video for Post's song "Saint-Tropez," which featured the Bugatti rolling through Big Cottonwood Canyon, according to a tweet from the Utah Department of Transportation.
Post was selling the Bugatti through Excalibur Motors, and Die Trying Auto Brokers and Ayers were authorized to sell the car, according to the lawsuit. Earlier this month, the Bugatti was listed for sale online at DuPont Registry. The lawsuit indicates the Bugatti is in Utah.
Thanks @PostMalone for making Big Cottonwood Canyon famous, just like @OzzyOsbourne … But seriously, check out those beautiful canyon views in the Saint-Tropez music video. pic.twitter.com/9xcB1UDgJR
— Utah DOT (@UtahDOT) September 17, 2019
On March 3, Dimopoulos said he submitted an online inquiry and later received a call from Ayers. The two negotiated the price and later decided on a sale price of $3.5 million in cash for the Bugatti, and Ayers told Dimopoulos he would email over the contract, according to the lawsuit.
That same day, Ayers called Dimopoulos back apologizing, saying he had received a signed contract from another buyer in Maryland for a higher price. However, Ayers allegedly said he had concerns about the other buyer. Dimopoulos claims he offered to wire the money to Ayers the same day to ensure the sale to him. The suit says Ayers later told Dimopoulos that the other buyer had a set amount of time to deposit the money in order to get the Bugatti.
Later the same day, Dimopoulos claims Ayers sent him a sales contract — a copy of which is included in the lawsuit — which included a line saying, "Steve (Dimopoulos) acknowledges that this is a back-up offer. If (the other buyer) fails to complete the transaction on 3/4/2022, Steve has the first right of refusal."
Dimopoulos returned a signed copy of the agreement minutes later, which was signed by Ayers on behalf of Excalibur Motors, according to the lawsuit. On March 4, Ayers allegedly told Dimopoulos in a text message that the other buyer had failed to meet the deadline.
In a subsequent call, Dimopoulos told Ayers that if Ayers sold the Bugatti to someone else at a higher price, the sale would violate their contract and Dimopoulos "would sue for the difference in price," the lawsuit says.
"Ayers immediately hung up on (Dimopoulos) and became unreachable, as (Dimopoulos) followed up with subsequent text messages that went unanswered by defendant Ayers," the lawsuit alleges.
The lawsuit notes that Dimopoulos "is and continues to be ready, willing and able to wire the full amount agreed upon pursuant to the sales contract to defendants."
In addition to Dimopoulos suing for $75,000 and the rights to buy the Bugatti, he's also requesting the court block the named defendants from being able to sell the Bugatti in the meantime, as well as for the defendants to pay his legal bills.
The case is scheduled to have a hearing on Monday. Excalibur Motors, Die Trying Auto Brokers and Ayers do not have attorneys listed in court records.
