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Brad Pitt hires detective to find Russian oligarch as case against Angelina Jolie gathers steam

Pitt claims that after the court ruled in his favor, Jolie and her team ceased negotiations over their vineyard, Chateau Miraval

Brad Pitt has hired a private investigator to track down a Russian oligarch who allegedly purchased Angelina Jolie's share in a $164 million chateau. This is an attempt by the 58-year-old actor to move the case against the 47-year-old actress forward after he sued her.

As per reports, Jolie sold her stake in their winery, but Pitt said the sale was invalid because they had agreed never to sell without the other's approval. The former spouses had purchased Chateau Miraval, a home and vineyard in the south of France, in 2008. After Jolie filed for divorce in 2016, Pit said she suggested paying him a substantial fee for his 'day-to-day' management of the business, reports Radar Online.

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Pitt claims that the negotiations regarding what to do with Miraval paused after Jolie made "an unreasonable demand." The 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood' star claims in his lawsuit that Jolie suggested jointly selling off Miraval or having her shares purchased by a third party.

They reportedly started working on a deal, but things turned haywire after the custody battle. Pitt claims that after the court ruled in his favor, Jolie and her team ceased negotiations over the vineyard. He alleged that the actress sold her interest in Miraval to a company called Tenute del Mondo behind his back. Tenute del Mondo is "indirectly owned and controlled" by a Russian oligarch named Yuri Shefler, as per Radar Online.

Pitt believes that Jolie sold her share to Yuri to undermine his investment in the company. He also claimed that Yuri and his team have attempted a hostile takeover of the business as well as made various threats against him. In a newly filed motion, Pitt has asked the judge for extra time to send Yuri legal paperwork. He explained that the Russian oligarch lives in the United Kingdom, which makes service difficult.

Pitt added that his team asked Tenute del Mondo's lawyer for an address to send legal paperwork to Yuri, but they failed to do so. The actor revealed he has hired a team of investigators to find Yuri, who reportedly has ties to the Russian president, Vladimir Putin. The filing states that Pitt is "diligently working to serve Defendants, including by working with investigators to determine Defendants' addresses and with foreign law firms to facilitate service through the Hague Convention."

Meanwhile, sources close to Jolie have accused Pitt of creating a "false narrative" about the 'Lara Croft' and 'Salt' actress. The sources also claimed that the "truth" behind the winery sale is yet to be made public. "Mr. Pitt's lawsuit against Ms. Jolie is an extension of a false narrative, and the truth of the situation has still not been made public," the source told People.

"After the events that led to Ms. Jolie filing for divorce and her years devoted to caring for their children, Ms. Jolie and the children have not been able to return to the property, and she made the difficult decision to sell her stake in the business. After making multiple offers to her ex-husband, and knowing the business will be inherited by their children, she found a business partner with experience in the alcohol industry," the source added.

"It's unfortunate that after she properly and legally exited the business, Mr. Pitt is entangling her in multiple lawsuits," Jolie's source concluded. On the other hand, a source close to Pitt said, "This makes no sense. The best way to retain value for the family would have been for one of their parents to retain ownership of an increasingly valuable asset. He could have bought her out. There's a lot more value in a family owning 100 percent than 40 to 50 percent."