Storage Wars Sued By Its Star; Show Is Faked And Execs Were Confronted By Cast, Court Papers Charge

In the five-count multi-million dollar lawsuit filed in California, Hester makes detailed and explosive allegations against the show, which the network has previously defended as 100% real and not staged.

He also says that cast members confronted executives at an in-person meeting this year and expressed theirconcern over the show being rigged.

Hester says was fired days after meeting with executives and subsequently asking to be indemnified by  the show for any third party claims regarding “the authenticity of the auction process and the Series.”

In a suit that is sure to cause ripples through the show and the network, Hester charges:

• Producers staged entire units and enlisted the cooperation of owners of storage facilities to do so.
• The show pays for storage lockers for “weaker” cast members as part of the manipulation
• The show plants items in lockers after having them appraised weeks in advance
• The show obtains items to be placed in the units from a business regularly featured on air

In addition, Hester charges that interviews with cast members are scripted and scenes of biding are faked to the extent that there are no auctions taking place while cast members and members of the public are shown bidding.

But perhaps the suit’s biggest bombshell is the charge that cast members, along with Hester, met with executives this year and expressed their concerns about the show being faked.

“The truth is that Defendants regularly salt or plant the storage lockers that are the subject of the auctions portrayed on the Series with valuable or unusual items to create drama and suspense for the show,” the suit alleges.

On Sept. 6, Hester and some other cast members met with Neil Cohen, A&E’s senior vice president, talent & production to express their concerns about this alleged practice. In the meeting Hester complained “that he believed that it was illegal for Defendants to continue to salt the storage units,” the suit alleges. “The other cast members present agreed with Hester that Defendants’ conduct was inappropriate and possibly illegal.”

After that meeting Hester and the rest of cast met with Cohen, Jeff Bumgarner, the series producer, Ernest Avila, the production company’s executive vice president of business and legal affairs. The issue of “salting” units again was discussed and according to the suit, “Bumgarner got angry and didn’t want to hear anything more about salting units. Cohen admitted he was aware of the salting issue but didn’t know the extent, as described by Hester. Avila identified two AETN executive who he indicated knew the scope of the salting issue and who had been aware that the storage units were salted from the beginning of the series.”

The end for Hester began on Sept. 18 when his entertainment attorney Stephen Barnes sent a letter to Avila requesting the star be indemnified by the show for any third party claims regarding “the authenticity of the auction process and the Series.”

According to the suit, “Defendants response to this request was to fire Hester from the Series.” Avila sent Hester a letter on October 1 rescinding exercise of his option for Cycle 4. “Avila’s letter cited Barnes Sept. 12 letter in which ‘Barnes had requested, among other things, that Defendants indemnify Hester,’” the suit charges.