Those that knew Robert Flaxman, the rich actual property mogul who served a month in jail over the so-called Varsity Blues school admissions scandal, have been shocked to be taught the 66-year-old was discovered lifeless at his $16 million Malibu mansion final week.

The Los Angeles Coroner’s Workplace dominated the dying a suicide.

In an e mail, Invoice Weinreb, the lawyer who represented Flaxman within the school admissions case, Stated, “I can inform you that I used to be shocked and saddened by the information, which got here as an entire shock.”

Flaxman’s first spouse, Laurie Henderson, was additionally shocked.

“When you concentrate on it, no one is aware of what individuals’s demons are,” Henderson informed The Day by day Beast on Thursday. “Folks do issues for a purpose [and] they don’t even know what the reason being.”

“I don’t know why he dedicated suicide,” she added. “I’ve been sick about all of it day.”

Flaxman owned a $600-million actual property agency known as Crown Realty & Improvement. He lately offered off a number of of his personal multi-million-dollar properties, together with a pair of $38-million Beverly Hills mansions and a $7.7 million dwelling in Malibu, in line with The Actual Deal, which first reported Flaxman’s dying.

Henderson, 64, recalled the person she met in school and married at age 21 as a “nice man” who graduated high of his class from chiropractic college within the early Nineteen Eighties. Flaxman “most likely might have touched something and turned it into gold,” she stated, including that as a pupil he pulled in an additional $8,000 per week or so—roughly $26,000 as we speak, adjusted for inflation—promoting water softeners as a aspect hustle. He was additionally managing a big mall on the time, and have become extra invested in actual property as their relationship went on. “That was his ardour from once I first met him,” Henderson informed The Day by day Beast.

After their divorce, Henderson stated the 2 remained shut for a number of years till her new husband turned jealous and compelled her to cease speaking with Flaxman altogether. Within the ensuing interval, Flaxman remarried and had two kids and Henderson reconnected with Flaxman after divorcing her second husband. He ultimately began partying and ingesting extra closely, stated Henderson, who by then had developed a heat friendship along with her ex, and have become identified for internet hosting glittery occasions at his Beverly Hills properties, even courting a Playboy bunny. It was nearly like his earlier life—the chiropractic job, the comfy marriage—was “erased,” Henderson stated.

“I feel he received into the cocktails somewhat an excessive amount of, the medicine,” she stated. “He received into that, and he sort of began liking that fairly a bit. I feel the cash, mixed with all that—there’s simply no boundaries.”

Nonetheless, Henderson acknowledged, that’s what individuals do in Los Angeles. And, she stated, “He might need partied, however he did that as a result of he might afford to try this. However folks that mattered to him, mattered to him. He actually cared about individuals.”

Henderson stated Flaxman, who was by then divorced for the second time, requested her to marry him once more, however she declined, explaining that she “cherished him, however wasn’t in love with him.”

In 2019, Flaxman was charged with bribing a take a look at proctor to inflate his daughter’s ACT scores—certainly one of practically 60 individuals charged within the high-profile dishonest scandal, which sucked in stars like Lori Laughlin and Felicity Huffman, and fellow businessmen like investor Robert Zangrillo, who was later pardoned by then-President Donald Trump. Flaxman served one month in jail and paid $50,000 in fines. On the time, a spokesperson stated Flaxman was “deeply remorseful” and “accepts the court docket’s dedication of punishment as simply.” (Flaxman was initially additionally charged for allegedly having paid a $250,000 bribe to get his older son into the College of California San Diego, however the cost was subsequently dropped.)

Henderson instructed the publicity across the scandal might have contributed to her ex-husband’s unhappiness.

“Each household has troubles,” she stated. “However once you’re on the market within the information, your troubles are going to be larger than all people else’s. And he didn’t actually have a strategy to cover them anymore.”

Nonetheless, Henderson maintained that Flaxman had dealt with the state of affairs with “grace,” and had not misplaced many shut mates due to it. He was married for the third time lower than two years after his sentencing, in Could 2021, to a lady with whom he had a younger son.

That’s what made Flaxman’s dying all of the extra complicated to Henderson. “I can’t think about him doing this to his son, his littlest son, until he actually felt that there was no method out,” she stated.

Henderson stated she was “saddened” by the thought that Flaxman might have struggled with the place to search out assist.

“He’s good in each different method, however why wasn’t he good on this method?” she stated. “I’ll by no means get it. I’ll by no means ever get it.”

“However I’ve already talked to him as we speak,” she added. “‘I stated, ‘Should you’re listening, I’m actually sorry.’ It simply sucks. It actually does.’”

Flaxman’s second spouse and present companion didn’t reply to The Day by day Beast’s requests for remark.

Should you or a cherished one are combating suicidal ideas, please attain out to the Nationwide Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or contact the Disaster Textual content Line by texting TALK to 741741. You can even textual content or dial 988.

The post ‘Full Shock’: Lawyer, Ex-Spouse Surprised by ‘Varsity Blues’ Mogul’s Suicide first appeared on Raw News.