Arrest warrant issued for Joe Francis, who is evading it in Mexico
Girls Gone Wild‘s Joe Francis has gone a bit wild himself, by reportedly evading a United States arrest warrant in Mexico. On Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Fernando M. Olguin officially made Joe a wanted man after he failed to turn in two luxury cars as part of his bankruptcy agreement.
The Wall Street Journal reports Girls Gone Wild went into bankruptcy in 2013, which was reportedly a strategic maneuver on Joe’s part to protect the company’s assets from Las Vegas casino magnate Steve Wynn. At the time, Joe’s gambling debts to Steve’s resorts were upward of $30 million. Girls Gone Wild was sold to a new owner last year.
After that, Joe said he was unable to turn over his 2007 Cadillac Escalade and a 2012 Bentley Flying Spur because they were stolen by an angry strip club owner in Mexico. Tuesday’s ruling means Judge Olguin wasn’t taking that as a valid excuse.
On top of it all, another judge ruled last August that Joe should pay $5,000 per day until everything is squared away. Because he hasn’t yet satisfied that, he owes an additional $1.3 million and counting.
Joe isn’t exactly dropping off the radar in Mexico: He is reportedly at his lavish home in Puerto Vallarta with girlfriend Abbey Wilson and their two baby daughters. The WSJ reports Mexico will likely comply with any extradition requests from the United States, but it can take a while.
