Number 7 Suge Knight
Marion “Suge” Knight Jr. is a former music industry mogul, best known for co-founding Death
Row Records, alongside Dr. Dre. Once revered as a king of the West Coast hip-hop scene,
Suge has a long criminal history. It has led him to a 28-year prison sentence,
which he received in September of 2018. His criminal activity can be traced to the late 1980s,
when he was arrested for domestic violence after assaulting his girlfriend on the street. Around
this time, he also stole a vehicle, while armed with a gun. During the auto theft,
he fired three times at the driver, which led him to also be charged with attempted murder. Another
notable controversy in which Suge was involved concerned the death of artist Tupac Shakur,
in 1996. Suge was driving a vehicle with Shakur, who was signed to Death Row Records at the time,
when they were attacked. Tupac was shot dead by the assailants, and Suge survived with grazes
from the bullets fired. Suge was sentenced to 9 years in prison for violating his parole,
but served 5. In 2006, Suge filed bankruptcy, both for himself and Death Row Records. He
reportedly claimed debts of over $100 million. In 2014, his former business partner at Death Row,
Dr. Dre, sued him for over $3 million for unpaid royalties. In 2015, Suge was arrested on suspicion
of murder. A fatal hit and run incident had occurred, leaving one man dead. Suge was the
prime suspect in the investigation. He pleaded no-contest to a charge of voluntary manslaughter,
in 2018. He was sentenced to 28 years in prison, and will be eligible for parole in July of 2037.
Number 6 Harvey Weinstein
Harvey Weinstein was a powerful Hollywood film producer who was infamously brought to justice
following the Me Too Movement. His career started when Harvey and his brother, Bob,
founded entertainment powerhouse Miramax, which was eventually acquired by Disney for $80 million.
The brothers then went on to create The Weinstein Company, where they continued to produce films.
Throughout his career, Harvey received numerous awards and praise from the film
industry. An analysis of Oscar acceptance speeches showed he’d been thanked or praised 34 times
between 1996 and 2016. Interestingly enough, during that time period, “God” was mentioned the
same amount of times by Oscar winners. Weinstein’s fall from grace began in October of 2017, when
media publications reported that more than a dozen women had accused him of various degrees of abuse.
Weinstein denied the claims against him, claiming all interactions had been consensual.
Momentum against Weinstein had started to build, however, and this was compounded by a viral tweet.
It was posted by actress Alyssa Milano. The tweet encouraged women with similar experiences
to speak up using the hashtag MeToo. Milano also confirmed that she’d experienced
similar abuse. It didn’t take long before an astounding number of women in Hollywood
came forward with similar allegations against Weinstein, some with reports going back
decades. Outside of Hollywood, thousands of women worldwide came forward with their
own stories, speaking out against men who had abused their positions of power.
As a result of the allegations, Weinstein was fired from his production company,
suspended from prestigious film organizations and stripped of awards. Weinstein attempted to counter
the wave of allegations through intimidation, allegedly hiring a private intelligence firm.
The firm gathered personal, sensitive information on those who had accused Weinstein,
in an attempt to pressure the victims into silence. Despite over 80 individual abuse
allegations against him, Weinstein has always pleaded not guilty. In February of 2020, he was
convicted of the crimes that could be backed by evidence and was sentenced to 23 years in prison.
Number 5 Paris Hilton
Paris Hilton is a famous socialite and media mogul who has created a multi-million dollar
brand for herself. Great grand-daughter of Conrad Hilton, founder of Hilton Hotels,
she was cast into the limelight since childhood. Paris began modeling as a child and mixed with
the likes of Kim Kardashian, who she is good friends with. Paris is no stranger to controversy.
The most notable scandal involved a video tape, of a sensitive nature, which was leaked onto the
internet in 2003. In 2006 she was charged for drunk driving. Her driving license was
suspended and she was placed on probation. Not long afterwards, she was caught speeding at
night with no headlights on. She was sentenced to 45 days in jail for violating her probation,
but was freed shortly after. She carried out the remainder of her sentence
with an electronic tag. Paris was also heavily criticized for inflammatory comments she’d made
in a taxi, which many deemed homophobic. These comments were recorded and may
have been leaked by the taxi driver. She’s apologized publicly for any offense caused.
Number 4 Nicki Minaj
Nicki Minaj is one of the music industry’s most acclaimed female rappers, with over
100 million units sold worldwide. She is also the highest paid female rapper of all time. Aside from
her achievements, the Trinidad-born star has been involved in controversy over the years.
At a New York Fashion Week party, she and singer Cardi B became embroiled
in a physical fight. It resulted in Cardi B sustaining a prominent bump on her forehead,
and both women being escorted out. Reportedly, the feud was linked to interactions on social media.
She has also feuded with fellow female rap artist Lil’ Kim, both alternatively alleging
that the other had copied their style. The two artists have subtly provoked each other for years.
Number 3 Bernie Madoff
Bernie Madoff was a Wall Street financial mogul who became infamous after he was caught
operating one of the largest Ponzi schemes the world has ever seen. The scheme was uncovered
by the FBI and the SEC, in 2008. Investors, who unknowingly participated in the illegal scheme,
are estimated to have lost more than 50 billion dollars over a 20 year period. Madoff’s career
began in the 1960s, when he had started trading penny stocks. He soon formed a business,
Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC. It would later become one of the biggest penny stock
brokerage firms on Wall Street. Madoff, as an advisor, also worked alongside his brother, Peter.
Together, they created trading software which was adopted by the NASDAQ exchange. Later, in 1990,
Bernie himself served as a chairman of the NASDAQ exchange. By the 1990s, Bernie’s brokerage firm
was processing between 10 and 15 percent of all trading orders on the New York Stock Exchange.
Madoff had become one of the elites on Wall Street. Bernie’s brokerage firm also offered
wealth management. It was on this side of the business that he operated his Ponzi scheme.
Promising investors huge returns, he operated it in a deceptive manner.
Madoff would pay investors phony “returns”, using the money of more recent investors.
Whilst doing so, he would pocket a large portion of funds, funneling them directly
into his personal bank account. Madoff had managed to keep his scheme under-wraps for two decades.
Despite even the SEC investigating him on numerous occasions, nothing had come to light until 2008.
During the financial crisis, investors flocked to cash out their investments. Madoff didn’t have
enough funds to pay them all, and was arrested once the news broke out. The crimes committed by
Madoff didn’t just have financial implications as they took a very real human toll. Individual
fortunes were wiped out, and even charities were ruined by Madoff’s greed. He became so hated that
he had to wear a bulletproof vest to court. On the second anniversary of Bernie’s arrest, one of his
sons, Mark, killed himself. For his crimes, Madoff was sentenced to 150 years in prison,
effectively a life sentence. In April of 2021, he passed away in prison from natural causes.
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Number 2 Rupert Murdoch
Rupert Murdoch is a media tycoon who is considered one of the most powerful and influential people
in the industry. Murdoch inherited a chain of Australian newspapers when he was just 22 years
old. This was after the unexpected passing of his father, Sir Keith Murdoch. Through a series
of lucrative acquisitions and expansions, Murdoch created a media empire worth billions of dollars.
Media companies in this empire include Sky News, Fox News and The Wall Street Journal
as well as The Sun and The Times. Because of his influence and control of the media,
Murdoch has been heavily criticized and the subject of multiple scandals. His papers and
television channels have been accused of being biased and misleading. Many believe that they were
used as a tool to fuel Murdoch’s own political and business agendas. One of Murdoch’s publications,
the now discontinued “News of the World”, was involved in a major scandal in the 2000s.
Employees at the publication were accused of hacking people’s phones
to gather exclusive information for news stories. Celebrities, politicians and even members of the
British Royal Family became victims of the scandal. After the revelations were made,
the publication was discontinued, resulting in the loss of 200 jobs. A number of convictions
and arrests followed. Rupert Murdoch stepped down from his position at the publication,
admitting a cover-up had taken place to hide the scale of the scandal.
Number 1 Peter Nygard
Peter Nygard is a fashion industry mogul who was arrested in 2020. Originally from Finland,
Nygard founded Nygard International, a company that makes women’s clothing.
Going back to at least 1978, he has been involved in legal controversy,
both in his business and personal life. Nygard has been accused of various crimes,
including human trafficking, racketeering and abuse against minors. Since 1995, he’s
allegedly used his influence and money to recruit victims to gratify himself and his friends.
They were often vulnerable and from disadvantaged backgrounds, making them easier to manipulate.
Nygard has been known to silence accusations against him by paying his victims off. In 2020,
Nygard had a wave of numerous abuse allegations made against him. New York court documents show
he has at least 57 alleged victims that are seeking damages for abuse spanning decades.
In December of 2020, Nygard was arrested in Winnipeg, Canada, under the extradition act.
He faces a class action lawsuit for his alleged crimes but has maintained that he’s innocent.
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