'Catwoman' Jocelyn Wildenstein claims she is so broke she can't even afford to buy food after ex-husband's family trust cut off the $110,000-a-month she's been given for 17 years

  • The 76-year-old socialite has claimed her ex-husband's trust has cut her off 
  • She says she is so broke she is unable to travel and can't even pay for food 
  • Wildenstein had been receiving monthly payments of around $2.5million 
  • It is paid as part of a settlement in the split from her late ex-husband Alec Wildenstein  

By Katie Hind For Mailonline

Published: 12:17 EST, 30 December 2016 | Updated: 15:35 EST, 30 December 2016

American socialite Jocelyn Wildenstein has sensationally claimed she is broke after ex-husband's family trust cut off her multi-million dollar annual maintenance.

The so-called ‘Catwoman' is as famous for her bizarre appearance after extensive plastic surgery as for her scandalous 1999 split from billionaire art dealer Alec Wildenstein. 

She has been widely regarded as being one of the wealthiest women in the United States after securing a $2.5million (£2 million) divorce payment and $100million (£80 million) a year in maintenance.

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American socialite Jocelyn Wildenstein has sensationally claimed she is broke after ex-husband's family trust cut off her multi-million dollar annual maintenance

The 76-year-old has told international film-maker Daphne Barak that she is without an income, unable to travel or pay for basics including food after the Wildenstein family trust fund that made her monthly payments dried up

But recently the 76-year-old has told international film-maker Daphne Barak that she is without an income, unable to travel or pay for basics including food after the Wildenstein family trust fund that made her monthly payments dried up.

It came just weeks before she appeared in a New York court accused of wounding her fashion designer boyfriend Lloyd Klein with a pair of scissors

And her claims of destitution are the latest twist in a barely believable saga that began with her 1978 marriage into one of the richest and most influential families in the world.

They endured a highly publicised split a decade later after she had discovered her husband in bed with a young blonde Russian model.

Wildenstein, left, is as famous for her bizarre appearance after extensive plastic surgery as for her scandalous 1999 split from billionaire art dealer Alec Wildenstein, right

He fled to France, and claimed he was penniless and that the family fortune was all in the hands of his autocratic father, Daniel.

She eventually reached a settlement with the family that guaranteed her monthly payments of around $111,000 (£90,000). But now, she says, the money has stopped.

Daniel Wildenstein died in 2001 and Alec himself passed away in 2008 aged 67 - leaving his brother Guy in control of the family art dealing and race horse breeding businesses.

However, to further complicate matters, Guy has now been charged by the French police with massive tax evasion.

Wildenstein in court last month after being accused of attacking her boyfriend with scissors. She now claims she has been left destitute 

Last month Wildenstein, left,  was arrested after what was described as a frenzied attack on her French couturier boyfriend Lloyd Klein, right, in their shared apartment at Trump Tower

Her ex-boyfriend Klein told Barak just days before the alleged assault that Wildenstein would not be coming to a planned meeting in Los Angeles because she could not afford the air fare from New York.

He added: ‘Jocelyn needs help. She doesn’t have a penny. I have been paying all her expenses the last year and a half. I can’t anymore, I am not Wildenstein. I am not that rich.’

Wildenstein later told Barak that her last monthly $111,000 (£90,000) payment from the family trust in France came in March 2015.

Wildenstein with her boyfriend Klein before they split. He earlier claimed he had been paying all of her expenses for a year and a half

‘Then they stopped coming,’ she added. ‘I wasn’t ready for it. How can I pay for dental care, doctors, the expenses of my homes or travelling. I have nothing to pay with.’

‘You know, it cannot be, that one day - all of the sudden - they stop the payments... Just leaving me like that... They expected me to live only 20 years.’

The 76-year-old said she needs to sell her Trump Tower apartments to make ends meet and is now considering legal action against the trust.

The Wildenstein family trust has been approached for comment but they are yet to respond.

Wildenstein, of course, is also famous for her lavish expenditure - her facelifts have cost more than $2.5million (£2 million), she has three apartments in Trump Tower in New York and spends more than $555,000 (£450,000) a year on food and $62,000 (£50,000) on telephone calls. At one point she is said to have kept two tigers in a bullet proof glass cage.

Last month she was arrested after what was described as a frenzied attack on her French couturier boyfriend in their shared apartment at Trump Tower.

She was accused of cutting his face and chest with scissors and throwing hot wax over him after flying into a 'violent rage'.

He was later photographed with clear wound marks on his face and it was claimed he had been forced to push her into a cupboard to prevent further attacks.

Then earlier this month, Klein was himself arrested after apparently trying to collect personal belongings.

Wildenstein is also famous for her lavish expenditure - her facelifts have cost more than $2.5million (£2 million), she has three apartments in Trump Tower in New York and spends more than $555,000 (£450,000) a year on food

Jocelyn Wildenstein pictured before she started having a string of plastic surgery procedures

He is said to be facing a number of charges including assault, grand larceny and criminal mischief.

Wildenstein has so far refused to discuss the latest incidents.

She told Barak that she blames her daughter Diane for failing to help her financially.

This is despite the fact that Diane has stood by her mother for years. She is now estranged from her and her other child Alec.

  • Daphne Barak’s full interview with Jocelyn Wildenstein, part of her Icons series, will be broadcast on www.daphnebarak.com

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