Sumner Redstone forced to borrow $100 million from National Amusements: lawsuit

VIACOM-REDSTONE

Media mogul Sumner Redstone on Tuesday sued two ex-girlfriends for civil claims including elder abuse, alleging he was forced to borrow $100 million from the private company that holds his shares in CBS Corp and Viacom to cover tax obligations on gifts he gave to the women.

The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, says Redstone cashed in stock options and restricted shares of Viacom and CBS in order to give $45 million each to Manuela Herzer and Sydney Holland. That triggered additional tax liabilities of over $90 million, the lawsuit said, forcing Redstone to borrow from National Amusements.

(Reporting by Dan Levine; Editing by Bill Trott)