Billionaire Chelsea co-owner accused of 'propositioning' employee for sex

16 May 2025, 11:56

A billionaire businessman who has a stake in Chelsea has been accused of making 'several sexual propositions' to a former employee that included a threesome with her and her husband.

A former employee of a California winery owned by the Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss, 89, has filed a sexual harassment lawsuit accusing Wyss of unwanted advances and lewd behaviour.

The lawsuit filed by Madison Busby, 30, alleges that Wyss's inappropriate behaviour began during a visit to the Halter Ranch winery in Paso Robles in September 2019, where he "deliberately placed his hand on Ms Busby's butt and groped her."

Wyss also allegedly asked her now-husband, Bryce Mullins - formerly the manager of Halter Ranch - to share any "sexy" pictures he had of Busby.

During a later visit to the winery in April 2020, the lawsuit alleges that Wyss "made several sexual propositions of Ms Busby" and "told stories of his sexual exploits in graphic detail to Ms Busby and Mr Mullins."

The stories allegedly recounted his previous and current sexual affairs. Wyss allegedly said there was nothing wrong with affairs, and Americans were "too uptight."

Wyss also allegedly told Busby: “If you ever went after me for sexual harassment, you would win.”

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Busby said she was "appalled and disgusted" by Wyss's behaviour, but did not complain due to fear of risking her husband's job. Her lawyers said she instead "attempted to ignore the comments, change the subject or deflect them."

Halter Ranch said the allegations were untrue and that they "intend vigorously advance the facts that surround their time at the winery and their departure.”

Busby says she moved to Halter Ranch in April 2020 to be with her now-husband. She became an employee of the winery in January 2021.

The lawsuit alleges that after she was hired, Wyss "began to proposition Ms Busby and Mr Mullins to have sex with him, either as a group or with Ms Busby alone, and Mr Wyss began trying to insert himself into their sex lives."

It also states that in March 2021, Wyss told Busby about a sexual encounter with a woman named Lori. He allegedly said that the pair "met a man they did not know, initiated oral sex with him, and then all returned to her apartment to have a threesome."

Busby's lawyers said these interactions made her "deeply uncomfortable" and she found them "deeply offensive", not only due to their sexual nature but also because she was married, and Wyss was her employer.

The lawsuit also claims that Busby's salary was cut from $75,000 to $65,000 after she returned from maternity leave in May 2023, and that she was forced to resign in July 2024 due to Wyss's behaviour.

Busby is suing for damages of an unspecified amount.

Wyss was part of the consortium that bought the Premier League football club Chelsea after its former owner, Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, was subjected to sanctions.

He is the founder of a medical device manufacturing company which he sold to Johnson & Johnson in 2012 for $20.2 billion. His current worth is $4.8 billion, according to Forbes.

A well-known philanthropist, Wyss has donated billions to left-wing causes, particularly environmental activism. He established the charitable Wyss Foundation in 1998, which is "dedicated to philanthropy that conserves land and wildlife."