A foreign billionaire known for donating hundreds of millions to Democratic causes is facing another accusation of sexual misconduct.
Swiss billionaire Hansjorg Wyss, 89, serially sexually harassed an employee almost 60 years younger than him who used to work for his California winery, Halter Ranch, a new bombshell lawsuit alleges.
Madison Busby, 30, filed a lawsuit last month against Wyss for alleged sexual battery, sexual harassment, wrongful termination, and emotional distress. She is suing Wyss, Halter Winery, and 20 other unnamed defendants in California superior court in San Luis Obispo.
Busby worked for Wyss from January 2021 to July 2024 as a project manager. She first encountered Wyss before that through her husband, Bryce Mullins, whom she met and began a long-term relationship with in 2019.
Her complaint details how Wyss allegedly groped her when they met for the first time in 2019 alongside her future husband, an employee of Wyss’s at the ranch. The businessman also made lewd remarks about her appearance to Mullins in her presence, the lawsuit alleges. A few days later, Wyss allegedly asked her boyfriend if he could share “sexy” photos of her and continued making remarks about her appearance.
In 2020, when Wyss and his wife visited the ranch again, he allegedly propositioned her for sex and told graphic stories to Busby and her boyfriend about his past and current extramarital affairs. Busby says she put up with Wyss’s behavior because she did not want to ruin her future husband’s relationship with him and potentially cost him his job.
Busby became employed by Wyss after she worked on the renovation of Ridge House, a large property near Wyss’s estate, and other projects for the ranch. She and her husband lived in Ridge House beginning in summer 2020 to supervise the renovation.
The lawsuit recounts several further instances of Wyss making lewd comments and propositioning Busby for sex starting in 2021. In addition, the lawsuit describes how Wyss regularly shared accounts in graphic detail of his sexual exploits and affairs outside of his marriage.
“Ms. Busby found these interactions, comments, and stories deeply offensive. They made her profoundly uncomfortable not only due to their nature, but also due to the fact that she was married and Mr. Wyss was her employer. Ms. Busby attempted to ignore the comments, change the subject, or deflect them. At the time, she did not raise complaints with Mr. Wyss out of concern for their employment,” the lawsuit reads.
Moreover, the lawsuit mentions multiple instances of Wyss allegedly removing his clothes in front of Busby and Mullins, and inviting them to do so as well.
Wyss appeared to know his behavior toward Busby was inappropriate, admitting in 2022 that “if you ever went after me for sexual harassment, you would win,” the lawsuit says. His admission did not stop him from the alleged inappropriate conduct and eventually retaliating against Busby and her husband for attempting to avoid Wyss instead of putting up with his behavior.
For example, Wyss tried to stop Busby and her husband from moving from Ridge House to a nearby property on the ranch, the Dubost House, when they were expecting their first child, the lawsuit states. Wyss began charging them rent for the Dubost House after previously not having them pay rent. When Busby returned from parental leave, Wyss reportedly reduced her salary and claimed she and her husband were “overpaid.”
“Mr. Wyss continued to make offensive statements about women, was either unable or unwilling to correct his behavior, and retaliated against both Ms. Busby and Mr. Mullins for their attempts to avoid his harassment.”
Busby resigned from working at Wyss’s ranch in July 2024 after years of facing “anxiety and distress” from Wyss’s conduct. Upon her resignation, Busby emailed Wyss about her experiences with him and described multiple instances of misconduct, according to the lawsuit.
Wyss is best known in U.S. politics for bankrolling liberal causes through dark-money organizations and ballot measure campaigns. According to right-leaning watchdog Americans for Public Trust, Wyss has spent $652 million on liberal nonprofits, including those tied to the billion-dollar Arabella Advisors dark-money network.
“This is just the latest example of Hansjorg Wyss’ alleged ethical lapses and raises new concerns over his massive funding of the Arabella Advisors network and progressive causes,” said Caitlin Sutherland, executive director at Americans for Public Trust.
“For decades, Wyss, an accused sexual predator who has refused to become an American citizen, has tried to influence politics to change the country into one that fits his far left vision.”
The lawsuit against Wyss is not his only encounter with allegations of sexual misconduct. An employee of his foundation previously accused Wyss of sexual abuse, with the two reaching a $1.5 million confidential settlement in 2013. Wyss’s attorneys later accused the woman of violating the settlement by conducting an interview with the Daily Caller when Wyss’s $5 million donation to the Clinton Foundation began receiving scrutiny.
Wyss’s influence remained significant in the 2024 election cycle. He evaded foreign election interference laws to spend tens of millions on progressive ballot initiatives nationwide by funding left-wing organizations. His unwelcome influence has prompted many Republican states to consider legislation to close the loophole allowing foreigners to bankroll ballot initiatives.