Saudi Arabia's most eccentric prince, Alwaleed Bin Talal, already owns one quarter of New York City's Plaza Hotel. Now, he's looking to snatch up the rest of it, The Express reported.
Right now Subrata Roy, an Indian mogul and founder of the Sahara conglomerate, owns three quarters of the Fifth Avenue hotel, but he's gone to jail for skipping a hearing in an investor fraud case. He's selling his stake in The Plaza to make bail, the report said.
Enter Alwaleed, the Saudi prince known for his peculiar investments, like the $220 million Boeing 747 he owns, or the Airbus 380 he bought, refurbished, and then sold at a loss.
He also owns The Savoy Hotel in London.
Alwaleed's net worth is a bit of a question mark - last year he cut ties with Forbes magazine after a dispute over the number (he said $29.6 billion; they said $20 billion). He's now suing the magazine for defamation.
According to The Express, Alwaleed's sights are now set firmly on The Plaza - and nothing else.
"Sahara has other hotels that are in the group but we don't care about those. Zero interest," The Express reported him as saying.