Billionaire Businessman Robert Foisie Accused of Hiring Hit Man to Kill his Son After he Was Kicked Out of Family Business

Robert Foisie is a 1956 graduate of WPI and the school’s largest patron.

For Worcester Polytechnic Institute, it was a singular embarrassment when it emerged last month that a post-divorce lawsuit featuring the school’s top benefactor contained claims by his ex-wife that his charitable gifts included money he illegally hid from her.

But that ugly story has taken a turn toward the bizarre.

A review of court cases in three states reveals significantly more: a dysfunctional wealthy family engaged in a venomous fight in which retired businessman and WPI donor Robert Foisie is accused by family members of having tried to hire a hit man to kill one of his adult children.

Foisie, 82, offered a former East Boston man a $20,000 down payment to murder his son or find someone else to do the job, according to allegations in a legal petition by his children that reached Nevada’s highest court. Foisie did so, legal filings allege, because he was angry that his son and daughter removed him as manager of a family investment company.

The children and their mother have made other dramatic allegations about Foisie, a West Hartford native, in multiple lawsuits in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Nevada. Among them: He’s being investigated by the FBI for wire fraud, he’s negotiating with the IRS over tax evasion, and he stashed tens of millions of dollars abroad to prevent his ex-wife from getting the money.

Foisie has aggressively fought the suits and emerged largely victorious in at least one of them. The sensational claim about a murder plot was barred by a judge from being considered in court.

The family legal fracas poses a public relations challenge for WPI, which has emblazoned Foisie’s name across campus. Its business school is named after him, as is a scholarship program, and a $49 million building called the Foisie Innovation Studio is under construction. A 1956 graduate, he is the university’s single largest patron, having donated $63 million to WPI over his lifetime.

After inquiries from the Globe, WPI issued a statement Thursday calling the allegations “concerning” and saying that “we are following this closely, and will take action as warranted.”

Then, on Friday, WPI president Laurie Leshin issued a public letter to the campus community that reads, in part: “Upcoming news reports may focus on personal disputes involving the Foisie family. . . . We don’t know whether any of the allegations are true or false, but I want to assure you that we are taking the situation seriously. While other universities and nonprofits have faced issues related to donors or major gifts, this is new territory for WPI. We are following this closely and will take action, if necessary, to ensure that we are aligned with best practices.”

The letter added that the Foisie Innovation Studio “is on track and will remain so,” noting that Robert Foisie is not the only donor to the project and “full funding to complete construction is in place.”

The Foisie family did not return calls from the Globe, and their lawyers declined to comment due to “ongoing litigation,” said Adam S. Mocciolo, a Bridgeport, Conn., attorney representing Foisie’s ex-wife, Janet.

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SOURCE: Sacha Pfeiffer
The Boston Globe