Nigerian playboy Kolawole “Kola” Aluko was revealed as the owner of the $50 million penthouse that went into foreclosure in New York’s prestigious One57 tower.
The 48-year-old energy tycoon hid behind a LLC when he paid $50.9 million for the 79th floor condo in 2014. He took out a mortgage loan for $35.3 million from a Luxembourg bank in 2015.
Aluko lived a lifestyle that most people can only dream of. He partied with the likes of Beyonce, Jay-Z and Naomi Campbell, whom he is rumored to have dated.
The bank that issued the loan on the 6,240-square-foot condo says Aluko defaulted on the mortgage when it came due last year.
The bank listed as collateral his 213-foot yacht, the Galactica Star, which he once rented to Beyonce and Jay-Z for $900,000 a week in 2015.
He is believed to be hiding out on the yacht which was last registered in Freeport, Bahamas, on May 3, but is now “out of range”, according to yacht trackers.
The NY Post reports that Aluko has been busy flipping his many properties that were purchased to hide profits illegally obtained from Nigeria’s former oil minister, who has been accused in a $1.76 billion plot to defraud the Nigerian government.
Aluko is unloading his pricey properties, including a $14.7 million, 11,478-square-foot manse in Beverly Hills that he rented to singer Ariana Grande. She was forced to move out when he sold the mansion at a loss for $13 million in 2016.
One57 tower, situated on “Billionaire’s Row”, is also home to New York’s most expensive condo. An “incredibly secretive” buyer shelled out over $100 million for the full floor unit in 2015.
