SERENA Williams’ stepmom is in trouble with the law after restarting a trucking business, which ran up over half a million dollars worth of debt, as the tennis ace’s childhood home now faces being sold to pay it all off.
Lakeisha Williams has set up the new firm in Augusta, Georgia, 540 miles from her home in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, with a muscle-bound trucking friend.
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But cops in Palm Beach County pulled her over last week, claiming she was driving her huge freight liner on the highway.
Lekeisha, 44, was given two tickets for having expired tags and “defective equipment,” including no working lights on the trailer.
Driving records from the county of Richmond, Georgia, obtained by The U.S. Sun reveal that she was driving a 2004 Freightliner Columbia Conventional with a 2006 utility trailer – both with expired tags and worth a combined $100,000 used.
Further investigation reveals that she’s set up Abda’s Trucking and Transportation LLC, registered at a basic three-bed home in Georgia, with pal David Goodwin, who shows off their truck on his open Facebook page.
This will be shocking news to her estranged husband, legendary tennis coach Richard, and also her creditors, who’ve been pursuing her through the courts for the cash she owes and demanding she sell Serena’s childhood home.
The former nightclub dancer is still married to “King Richard,” 80 and 36 years her senior, although they’re going through a bitter six-year divorce after she was accused of selling his vehicles and cashing his social security behind his back to rake in hundreds of thousands.
She admitted in court docs to “stealing” his motorhome and faking his signature on official docs to sell the vehicle – and also forging his signature again to transfer the deeds of his home in Palm Beach Gardens into her name.
This meant she could take out a $255,000 loan with “hard lender” David Simon and buy a Volvo truck from him to set up a disastrous trucking business.
She’s barely paid a cent back to Simon, he alleges, blowing the lot on “fast food and frivolities,” with Simon now demanding over $600,000, including interest.
Ironically, Lakeisha was stopped by police just four miles from the Palm Beach home, which suggests she’s been running the transport firm right under the noses of Richard and Simon.
Richard, 80, who’s had three strokes and still struggles with his speech, denies ever giving her permission to sign the docs on his behalf and, through his son, Chavoita LeSane, told The U.S. Sun that they’ll soon be filing a lawsuit for elder abuse.
The house has been in the Williams family since 1995, when he purchased it with Serena’s mom, Oracene, for $355,000.
Lakeisha allegedly began faking Richard’s signature to transfer ownership of his vehicles, which were then sold without his knowledge.
She admitted on oath that she sold his 1999 Bluebird motor home, worth $46,000, using an accomplice Brandy Clark but says it was because Richard left her and their son Dylan, ten, starving, adding: “I had to sell it so I can eat and my son can eat.”
After getting the loan and truck from Simon, her business quickly unraveled and he was forced to repossess the truck.
It was found split in half in Long Island City – 1,200 miles from Lakeisha’s home and badly damaged – with no sign of Lakeisha.
Simon said in his deposition: “The truck was located in New York, Long Island City, having been in an accident and causing $30,000 worth of damage to property.
“The trailer split in half, spilled its cargo all over the street, the clean up and the storage of all of that cost $30,000.
“Josh [Simon’s brother] flew to Long Island City to get the truck and drive back here to Florida,” he added.
While it looks likely the $1.4million property will be sold at auction – despite Lakeisha’s repeated attempts to halt proceedings by declaring herself bankrupt – Richard and his family are not giving up on getting the property back.
Son Chavoita said they are now looking at new legal counsel.
Ailing Richard said the home was “beautiful” when he lived there with Serena, Venus and Oracene.
“The house is easily worth a million dollars,” he insisted.
“The ten acres of land is unbelievable,” Richard said, explaining that he’d like to demolish the home and build a new property.
“I don’t need the past no more. If I keep [focusing] on the past, I won’t do much,” the famed tennis coach added.
But he admitted: “I don’t know if I’ll get it back or not.
“I don’t know if I can or not.”
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