Wyclef Paid His Mistress $105,000 Through His Charity
Posted by Media Outrage on March 15th, 2010
Wyclef is under FIRE for allegedly giving his mistress $105,000 through his Haiti charity.
Via Gawker:
Yele Haiti, the sketchy foundation that Wyclef Jean founded to help the Haitian people—which received millions in the outpouring of generosity following the wake of the earthquake there—paid Jean’s mistress and personal assistant $105,000 in 2008.
That’s Zakiya Khatou-Chevassus on the right in the photo above. According to Yele Haiti’s 2008 tax return, which was posted this week by the Smoking Gun, the charity paid Khatou-Chevassus $105,000 as an independent contractor in 2008 for “program development.” That amounts to roughly one-third of all the money Yele spent that year on management and general expenses.
So what did she do for that money? Khatou-Chevassus is currently listed on Yele’s web site as the organization’s vice president. But according to five sources familiar with Yele’s operations, in 2008 she served as Jean’s personal assistant—working on his commercial endeavors as well as his charitable ones—and was involved romantically with the former Fugees star.
“She worked for Wyclef on all Wyclef matters,” says one source who has worked with Jean in the past. “She did whatever Wyclef needed that day, whether it was related to Yele or not. She would do things like book flights, and she wasn’t very good at it. It’s a shame that she made that much money.” The source said Khatou-Chevassus’ salary amounted to more than three times what Suzie Sylvain, Yele Haiti’s dedicated program director who is credited by many Yele Haiti insiders with actually keeping the organization running, was paid.
“Everyone knows they were in a relationship,” says another source familiar with Yele Haiti. “A dozen people, including me, saw and knew. It wasn’t a secret.” Jean is married, but he has said in the past that he has an open relationship with his wife.
Jean has a long history of using Yele Haiti’s money for his own commercial gain. In 2005, 2006, and 2007, the foundation paid out a total of $410,000 to commercial entities controlled in whole or in part by Wyclef, including a whopping $250,000 for advertising time on a Haitian television station he co-owns. According to internal financial statements obtained by Gawker in January, Jean didn’t contribute a single dollar to Yele Haiti’s American operation during the year he founded it, and its founding executive director resigned because he “saw hundreds of thousands of dollars going to business needs and nothing going to the charity, when it seemed that part of Wyclef’s new PR strategy focuses on his charitable endeavors.” In 2006, he demanded a $100,000 fee to perform at a Yele Haiti fundraiser designed to raise money for his own hometown. The event was canceled in part because securing Jean’s participation was too expensive.
As the Smoking Gun noted, Khatou-Chevassus seems to have done some modeling in the past. The photo on the right above was taken at a 2009 reception she organized in New York for Prince Edward’s International Award Association. (Captions from photographs taken at the event that we found online identify her as the CEO of Carte Blanche International, but we’re almost certain that’s an error. All of the people we spoke to who know Khatou-Chevassus say it’s preposterous that she’d be a credit card executive; we’ve called Carte Blanche to ask.)
A call to Khatou-Chevassus and an e-mail to Yele Haiti’s publicist were not immediately returned.
UPDATE: A fifth source has confirmed the romantic relationship.
March 15th, 2010 at 7:56 pm
Sad, what is it with open relationships were it is only one-sided? Damn, women got it that bad? You need to be cheated on and allow men to disrespect you and then kick in the door, I’m back boo? WTF. Unless it is a culture thing?
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March 15th, 2010 at 8:01 pm
Damn Clef! WTF?!
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March 15th, 2010 at 8:11 pm
Keep donating that money folks…buahahaha!
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March 15th, 2010 at 8:37 pm
What in the HELL…people where is your self-respect????
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March 15th, 2010 at 8:39 pm
This is the reason I do not like to donate to charitable organization, damn Wyclef I’m very surprise.
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March 15th, 2010 at 11:39 pm
…tha fuck?…I donated to Yele…that bitch has my money!
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March 16th, 2010 at 12:22 am
SMH….Wyclef, I hope this isn’t true , or I’ll be pissed ..this is not cool at all
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March 16th, 2010 at 12:58 am
wow.
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March 16th, 2010 at 1:35 am
That’s fucked up, but why am I not surprised?! If I don’t give ppl the money myself, its staying in my pockets. Thanx Wyclef for reinforcing that motto. True role model. SMDH!
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March 16th, 2010 at 10:17 am
Sean was right, he’d make a perfect Haitian Pres. Damn Clef..wack AND a crook.
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Mrs. 2020VIZN♥ Reply:
March 16th, 2010 at 1:04 pm
Damn dude! I was just about to say “Love the Gravie”, then i zoomed in and realized that aint bob lol, who the hell is it? lol
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RubHer Reply:
March 17th, 2010 at 3:58 am
I & I
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Mrs. 2020VIZN♥ Reply:
March 17th, 2010 at 1:29 pm
Holy Emmanuel I, King Selassie I, Jah Ras TafarI … lol. Good work though, much love bro’
This empress salutes you!
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March 16th, 2010 at 11:29 am
Wyclef need to sit his fake ass down somewhere. Taking donations and giving them to his jump-off is a No No. Old Swayback forehead idiot! That is why black people and their honest organziations are not taken serious like some of the other charities (white) that are probably crooked as well but they are not exposed. He should have spent his own stacks and made sure the money was going to Haiti.
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March 16th, 2010 at 12:13 pm
LOLOL!! that is why none gets my money, how do I actually know if my money is going where I intend for it to go! bullshit, i dont donate.
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March 16th, 2010 at 3:00 pm
h,s tr
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March 16th, 2010 at 6:39 pm
HMMMMMM His foundation AIN’T NO DIFFERENT THAT THE WHITE PEOPLES FOUNDATIONS. That’s why alot of them create non profit foundations for that purpose and tax shelters.WAKE UP BLACK PEOPLE.PEACE
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March 17th, 2010 at 9:03 am
Like the Red Cross aint crooked…they just smart with their swarmy sh*t and just haven’t been blasted for it.
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January 17th, 2011 at 12:55 pm
I do not know what to say…Man that is some shady shit…but I do not donate to any charities anyways because you know that it is a rip off…Old ugly bastard..I hope it isn’t true but if it is than like they always say what is done in the dark will come to light and thank goodness the truth is out and we now know what a liar he is….and what is up with all these open relationships??!!..just nasty, no respect and sad…
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