After Gerald LaPorte was tapped to analyse the precocious Zappos main Tony Hsieh’s will, helium inspected the ink, paper, font, creases and staple holes.
Hsieh’s begetter had claimed the will was fake and sought forensic testing, albeit by different examiners. LaPorte, a forensic chemist and papers dating specialist, came up empty-handed trying to fig retired erstwhile it was written.
Then, his study was enactment nether wraps — aft a lawyer for Hsieh’s dada wanted the findings shielded from nationalist view.
All told, the forensic study and its court-ordered sealing people the latest twists successful an already bizarre saga successful Las Vegas surrounding the destiny of the monolithic wealthiness Hsieh near behind.
Hsieh’s purported past volition and testament surfaced nether still-unclear circumstances agelong aft his death, upending the Las Vegas mogul’s probate lawsuit and sparking a bid of mysteries stretching from America’s casino superior to Wyoming and Pakistan.
‘Immediately expunged’
LaPorte’s 410-page forensic study provides an in-depth look astatine the carnal characteristics of Hsieh’s will. He provides a elaborate relationship of his technological investigation of ink and paper, each successful the quest to find if the volition was drawn up connected its listed day oregon overmuch later.
Hsieh, the erstwhile CEO of online footwear seller Zappos and look of downtown Las Vegas’ economical revival, died connected Nov. 27, 2020, astatine property 46 from injuries suffered successful a Connecticut location fire.
A commercialized gathering with a mural of ex-Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh is seen on Las Vegas Boulevard by Fremont Street successful downtown Las Vegas connected Thursday, Nov. 21, 2024. The spot was formerly owned by ex-Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh. (Chase Stevens/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @csstevensphoto
His father, Richard Hsieh, has been managing his son’s property done a probate lawsuit successful Clark County District Court, and the dad’s ineligible squad stated aggregate times that the younger Hsieh died without a will. However, successful outpouring 2025, 2 instrumentality firms teamed up to record a copy of the purported volition successful court.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal obtained a transcript of the now-sealed forensic study that LaPorte filed with District Court connected the evening of July 20. The papers was wide distributed done a work notification conscionable minutes aft it was filed successful court, the paper found.
But astatine a proceeding connected July 21, Vivian Thoreen, a lawyer for Hsieh’s father, asked the tribunal to “immediately expunge” the report.
Thoreen said that the younger Hsieh’s Social Security fig was “all over” the study and that it should beryllium refiled “confidentially,” according to a transcript of the hearing.
Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh speaks astatine the company's All Hands worker lawsuit astatine the Smith Center for the Performing Arts successful Las Vegas connected Aug. 9, 2012. The lawsuit is simply a quarterly gathering to update employees of goings-on successful the company. (Jessica Ebelhar/Las Vegas Review-Journal) Jessica Ebelhar
Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh speaks astatine the company's All Hands worker lawsuit astatine the Smith Center for the Performing Arts successful Las Vegas connected Aug. 9, 2012. The lawsuit is simply a quarterly gathering to update employees of goings-on successful the company. (Jessica Ebelhar/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
“Not that the harm hasn’t already been done,” she told District Judge Jacob Reynolds.
Jennifer Willis, an lawyer for a subordinate successful the case, agreed that the Social Security fig should beryllium redacted. But she objected to the study being submitted extracurricular of nationalist view, the transcript shows.
“They person to found a ground to record it confidentially,” Willis said.
Thoreen past said the judge’s idiosyncratic compartment telephone fig was successful the study and suggested this get redacted oregon near retired of the resubmitted document.
Reynolds ordered the forensic study sealed, tribunal records show.
‘The sealing is simply a impermanent contiguous solution’
Nevada court rules amusement that anyone tin inquire a tribunal to seal oregon redact records successful a lawsuit “by filing a written motion” and that a justice whitethorn behaviour a proceeding connected the matter.
The lawsuit portal does not amusement immoderate written question to seal the forensic report.
Las Vegas lawyer Maggie McLetchie, who handles public-records cases and has represented the Review-Journal successful ineligible matters, said that each tribunal records are presumptively public.
She said that to person a filing sealed, a question indispensable beryllium submitted to tribunal arguing why, and that this gives the nationalist an accidental to situation the request.
Reynolds said successful an emailed connection to the Review-Journal that the sealing helium ordered “was based connected oral question erstwhile it was discovered idiosyncratic accusation that should person been redacted was successful the filing.”
District Judge Jacob Reynolds
He added: “The sealing is simply a impermanent contiguous solution truthful the accusation tin beryllium redacted.”
Thoreen, a spouse with Holland & Knight, and lawyer Dara Goldsmith, a shareholder with Goldsmith & Guymon who is besides representing Hsieh’s begetter successful the case, did not respond to requests for comment.
Mystery figure
Hsieh was unmarried and died with a massive fortune, and past year, his probate lawsuit took a shocking crook that lone became much bizarre.
Law firms McDonald Carano and Greenberg Traurig filed tribunal papers successful April 2025 with a transcript of Hsieh’s seven-page past volition and testament — dated March 13, 2015 — and a missive describing however it was found. The firms were representing named executors successful the will.
A signage with instrumentality steadfast Greenberg Traurig's sanction is seen extracurricular of an bureau gathering successful Summerlin, connected Monday, June 2, 2025. (Bizuayehu Tesfaye/Las Vegas Review-Journal) @bizutesfaye
The volition was recovered successful February 2025 successful the idiosyncratic belongings of the precocious Pir Muhammad, according to the letter, which stated Muhammad had suffered from Alzheimer’s illness and was not alert Hsieh had died.
The missive did not accidental erstwhile Muhammad died oregon wherever helium lived, nor did it supply immoderate details astir his vocation oregon his relation with Hsieh.
As outlined successful the will, Hsieh had named Muhammad an executor and gave him “exclusive possession” of the original, successful portion to forestall anyone from destroying the document.
But respective radical who knew Hsieh told the Review-Journal that they never heard of Pir Muhammad.
The Review-Journal besides checked spot records, tribunal records, business-entity registrations, online telephone directories, hunt engines and different databases but recovered thing that linked the sanction to Southern Nevada oregon confirmed who helium was.
‘We person nary idea’
In June 2025, McDonald Carano and Greenberg Traurig filed tribunal papers that included a transcript of Muhammad’s decease certificate. The papers was written successful some English and Urdu, and arsenic shown astatine the top, it was issued by the authorities of Balochistan, a state successful Pakistan.
People look done the model of a mosque conscionable earlier day prayers successful Quetta, Pakistan connected Friday, Nov. 2, 2001. Quetta is the superior of the state of Balochistan. (AP Photo/Laura Rauch)
But overmuch of the decease certificate was redacted, including Muhammad’s origin of death, spot of death, and address. It inactive showed his name; his nationality, Pakistani; and his day of birth, shown lone arsenic 1931.
It besides showed his day of death, shown lone arsenic October 2022 — which meant that Muhammad died much than 2 years earlier Hsieh’s volition was supposedly recovered successful his possessions.
Goldsmith and Thoreen antecedently wrote successful tribunal papers that adjacent if the papers could beryllium authenticated, it lone showed that idiosyncratic named Pir Muhammad died and did not amusement that it was the aforesaid Pir Muhammad who was named successful the will.
The Review-Journal antecedently recovered much than 1,000 profiles connected Facebook with the sanction Pir Muhammad. Many of them said they lived successful Pakistan.
During a court proceeding past summer, Goldsmith said that her squad inactive didn’t cognize wherever precisely the volition was found.
“We don’t cognize wherever successful the satellite this papers was located,” she said. “We person nary idea.”
Questions mount
Pir Muhammad’s individuality and decease certificate are conscionable 2 of the many mysteries that person swirled astir Hsieh’s will.
Another cardinal fig successful the saga, Kashif Singh, wrote the missive explaining the will’s discovery. No interaction accusation oregon details connected Singh were provided successful that filing, though according to consequent tribunal papers, Singh was Muhammad’s grandson, and helium provided the redacted decease certificate.
As portion of an bid for courthouse administrative records, lawyers for Hsieh’s property obtained a telephone fig and mailing code for Singh, who did not respond to the ineligible team.
The telephone fig had a 307 country code, which covers Wyoming, and the mailing code was the aforesaid arsenic a registered cause successful Wyoming’s capital, Cheyenne. Such businesses grip incorporation filings and different firm paperwork.
Riders basal connected their horses during the 4th time of the 122nd yearly Cheyenne Frontier Days parade connected Saturday, July 28, 2018, successful downtown Cheyenne, Wyoming. (Blaine McCartney/The Wyoming Tribune Eagle via AP)
Moreover, the volition was signed by respective witnesses, 3 of whom had a Las Vegas code listed with their sanction and signature successful the document.
But spot managers could not find immoderate records that the witnesses had lived there, tribunal records show.
On apical of each this, probate lawyers were near scratching their heads astatine however the volition was written, telling the Review-Journal that the papers was confusing and clunky, did not travel cardinal estate-planning principles, and featured connection and details they don’t usually spot successful specified documents.
‘Creating a mendacious trail’
Eventually, successful December, Richard Hsieh claimed the will was bogus.
His ineligible squad said successful tribunal papers that Tony Hsieh’s signature successful the volition was forged, that nary of his family, friends oregon colleagues had ever heard of cardinal names successful the document, and that the witnesses who signed it “likely bash not exist.”
The lawyers did not impeach anyone by sanction of orchestrating the alleged forgery. But they wrote that whoever was “behind this scam went to bonzer lengths to screen their tracks by creating a mendacious trail.”
Meanwhile, two extracurricular lawyers were besides fixed a relation successful the proceedings. In an bid dated Jan. 9, then-District Judge Gloria Sturman appointed Nevada attorneys Robert Armstrong and Mark Ferrario arsenic co-special administrators of Hsieh’s estate.
Leigh Goddard, an lawyer with McDonald Carano, speaks successful tribunal during a proceeding successful the probate lawsuit involving the property of Tony Hsieh astatine the Regional Justice Center successful Las Vegas Thursday, June 5, 2025. Goddard was representing Robert Armstrong of McDonald Carano, a named co-executor successful the precocious discovered will. (K.M. Cannon/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
They had been named executors successful the volition but never met Hsieh oregon adjacent worked connected his property planning, tribunal records show.
Sturman’s assignment was for the “limited purpose” of letting the lawyers reason to admit Hsieh’s purported volition to probate and support immoderate contention to it, tribunal records show.
Hsieh’s begetter asked the Nevada Supreme Court to reverse the ruling, claiming it created “absurd and unworkable consequences.”
Then, successful March, Richard Hsieh acceptable retired to broaden his team’s probe of the volition with CSI-style testing.
‘Special master’
His ineligible squad sought tribunal support to conduct forensic investigation of the document, including “semi-destructive” investigating that would not really destruct the papers but alternatively instrumentality pinhole-sized samples of ink and paper.
With this testing, the lawyers argued, examiners could fig retired who made the ink, erstwhile the ink was manufactured, and however agelong it had been connected the document. This would assistance find if the volition was signed astir the clip of the day listed connected the document, oregon if it was signed later, the ineligible squad said.
Judge Reynolds told the parties to place forensic experts to beryllium considered for the relation of “special master” to behaviour the analysis, tribunal minutes show.
Legal counsel for Hsieh’s begetter past filed tribunal papers seeking support for his experts to commencement investigating “immediately,” without waiting for the assignment of a peculiar master.
That aforesaid day, Ferrario and Armstrong besides filed tribunal papers with their proposal for the role: the forensic subject steadfast co-founded by LaPorte.
In an bid dated May 4, Reynolds appointed LaPorte — who is besides the forensic laboratory manager for the national Homeland Security Investigations bureau — arsenic the peculiar master.
‘One and done’
In his forensic report, LaPorte said helium conducted an on-site introspection of the volition connected June 1 astatine the District Court installation known arsenic the Phoenix Building, astatine 330 S. Third St. successful downtown Las Vegas.
He analyzed the paper, printer toner, penning ink, and different elements of the document.
Overall, his examinations and chemic investigating did not “provide capable grounds to conclude” whether the volition was drawn up connected its listed day oregon astatine a “much later” time, helium reported.
His study was electronically filed with the tribunal astatine 7:53 p.m. connected July 20. Then, astatine 7:57 pm, a notification of work was emailed with a nexus to download the report.
Dozens of radical were listed successful the announcement arsenic work contacts.
At the tribunal proceeding the adjacent day, Thoreen, the lawyer for Hsieh’s father, said: “As present the satellite knows, the Special Master has filed his study publicly, and helium did truthful past night.”
She asked for a tribunal bid that the peculiar maestro “cease each work” and argued that LaPorte was trying to “create further assignments for himself,” the transcript shows.
“He is done with his assignment, and I haven’t had a accidental to reappraisal 400-plus pages of his report, but I would accidental it is 1 and done,” Thoreen said.
Contact Eli Segall astatine esegall@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-383-0342.
English (US)·