The suicide of multi-millionaire developer Sergio Pino ended the murder-for-hire case that was being built against him by the FBI and federal prosecutors, but it has now touched off a battle over his estate that played out Friday in Miami-Dade probate court.
At the request of Tatiana -- the wife Sergio allegedly wanted dead -- a judge Friday blocked Sergio’s brother, Carlos, from taking control of his estate as personal representative, as Sergio sought in the will he signed on March 11.
That is the same day Bayron Bennett, a food and beverage worker on Pino’s 92-foot, $6 million yacht, Century Star, was taken into federal custody. Bennett is now facing, with five other men, the same murder-for-hire charge the U.S. Attorney says Sergio, 67, was looking at -- had he not killed himself.
In nominating his brother, Carlos, personal representative of his estate, Sergio would give him power to retain and sell all or any part of his property, ultimately for the benefit of Sergio’s four children, including two from a previous marriage, beneficiaries in a trust Sergio created that same day.
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Not included: Tatiana, 55, Sergio’s wife of 32 years who accused him of trying to have her killed after she filed for divorce in April 2022.
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At stake in the probate proceeding is Sergio’s share of a fortune that, according to statements of financial condition produced in their now-dismissed divorce case, boosted the couple’s net worth in 2021 to either $153 million or $359 million. (Sergio said in a deposition the document showing the larger amount was a joke and the lower amount was accurate)
Whatever the accounting reveals, Tatiana’s lawyers Friday persuaded Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Yvonne Colodny, to appoint a curator with limited responsibilities until they can further investigate what Sergio did with assets they claim rightfully belong to Tatiana. Colodny said she could decide on a curator in about 10 days.
In court and in filings, Tatiana’s attorney, Glen Waldman, accused the brothers of conspiring to siphon off millions of dollars from assets the couple possessed jointly into entities controlled by Carlos, including the Century Plumbing company Sergio created back in 1977 that is now owned by Carlos, headquartered on a Tamiami street named in honor of their father, Eugenio Pino.
“This guy tried to destroy the business,” Waldman said of Carlos, referring to a settlement agreement Tatiana was asked and refused to sign last weekend that her attorneys said would have resolved the key issues in Carlos’ favor. “He would be the worst and last person you should ever appoint. He is conflicted beyond belief because of the fraudulent transfers from his brother. We don't know if he was involved in the efforts of his brother to have his wife killed.”
There is no evidence to suggest Carlos was involved in the crime.
Carlos and his attorney declined to comment, but in their own court filings and in Carlos’ deposition they strongly deny any suggestion Carlos was involved in the crime or fraudulent transfers. They state Tatiana “failed to provide any specific facts to support the allegations,” noting she “mentions the transferring of money from the decedent to Carlos Pino but admits that there is no evidence suggesting that this transfer was in any way fraudulent.”
Tatiana’s pleadings also allege Sergio Pino was unlawfully disposing of their joint assets as late as July 15, the day before he killed himself.
Prominent South Florida probate and estate attorney Christopher Wintter, not involved in the case, told NBC6 that under Florida law “in general, if the spouse and the decedent held property jointly, and there had been no disqualifying event like trying to convey it away -- if they own property jointly, as tenants by the entirety, as husband and wife, then what would happen is the wife would automatically be entitled to all of the assets that were owned in that fashion. So that would happen outside of probate with nothing needing to be done, just automatically by operation of law.”
But determining what was jointly owned, or was Sergio’s alone, is the center of the already contentious probate battle, complicated by a contested agreement signed by the couple around the time of the 1992 marriage and a series of trusts Sergio created in the months before his suicide.
Sergio Pino sought to enforce that in divorce court, greatly limiting Tatiana’s rights to assets they would accumulate during their marriage.
Tatiana’s divorce lawyer claimed the agreement was invalid and was entered into under duress, as it was signed the day before their religious ceremony before hundreds of guests in Miami Beach, though weeks after the document states they had a civil ceremony.
Carlos’ attorney, Sergio Mendez, Friday told Judge Colodny the validity of the marital agreement and a determination of who owns Century Homebuilders group are key to resolving the probate case. But his request to have Carlos appointed personal representative or, alternatively, curator, were denied.
“Well, it's a mess,” said Wintter, “and there's going to be a lot of money spent in attorney's fees, no matter how the proceeding goes,” and he said it could go on for years.
Then there’s this: Sergio is the unindicted co-conspirator in a federal indictment against nine surviving defendants, six of them charged with murder-for-hire and the rest for their alleged part in stalking and arsons directed at Tatiana and her family. None of the men have yet entered a plea for those charges.
The indictment and complaints describe how Sergio allegedly directed the leaders of two crews to kill his wife before their divorce could be finalized and a judge could rule on what was properly her share of their fortune. Pino denied any involvement until the end.
It was Sergio’s insistent denials of being part of that plot that Tatiana’s lawyers say reveals an “insane delusion” resulting from a “diseased condition of mind” which would render the will he signed in March invalid.
She cites Sergio’s claim in July he was so “mentally and emotionally” impaired, so “overwhelmed and distraught” by what he called false accusations, that he could not attend a divorce hearing on July 15th. He killed himself the next day.
Wintter said that might be a stretch.
“An insane delusion is a very unusual type of lack of capacity. And at least in my view, it probably wouldn't apply in this case,” he said.
In court papers, lawyers representing Carlos Pino argue the judge must appoint Carlos as the personal representative – as Sergio’s will stated – allowing him to oversee the estate and make decisions that would ultimately be for the benefit of beneficiaries of the trust Sergio created in March.
But Judge Colodny Friday agreed with Tatiana’s attorneys that the issues are so complex and the time so short – just 24 days since the death – that she’ll appoint a curator to keep things stable while attorneys investigate and litigate further.
One of the key questions in the case could be who the rightful owner is of what was the crown jewel of the Pino homebuilding and development empire, Century Homebuilders Group.
In depositions, Sergio said they owned it together and the operating agreement from when it was formed in 2013 states they own it together “as husband and wife.”
So Tatiana’s lawyers say she became the sole owner the moment her husband killed himself and she began showing up at company offices after her husband died, changing the locks this week.
A lawyer for Sergio’s brother wrote an email to the company’s lawyer stating her presence at the company offices negatively affects both the value and the operations of the company.
In his deposition, Carlos said the company’s top manager, its chief financial officer and Sergio’s executive secretary all left the company this week because “they couldn’t work in that environment anymore.”
He also quoted from a letter he received from Sergio after his death, reading, “he loved me, that he was innocent and to take care of my father.”
