Calvin Harris Accuses Longtime Financial Advisor of Stealing $22.5 Million

DJ Calvin Harris has accused his longtime financial advisor of stealing $22.5 million to fund a ‘boondoggle’ Hollywood real estate project.

Scottish music producer and DJ Calvin Harris claims his financial advisor, Thomas St. John, has embezzled millions from the star to fund a bogus real estate project in Hollywood.

According to an arbitration demand filed by Harris, St. John, who has worked with Harris for 13 years, began developing CMNTY Culture Campus in 2020. The 460,000 square-foot development on the corner of Sunset Boulevard and Highland Avenue was to feature recording studios, office space, and an artist’s lounge.

Harris alleges that the project ran low on funds in 2023, and St. John asked Harris to fund an emergency cash infusion. St. John is said to have handed over documents for Harris to sign without providing any information about the project. Harris made a $10 million loan to the project and a $12.5 million equity investment.

Shortly afterward, Harris claims St. John caused the company to distribute $11.7 million to an entity controlled by St. John—an allegation that St. John and his attorneys have denied.

“To this day, [Harris does] not know where [his] investment has gone or what it has been used for,” his attorneys write. “In any event, [St. John] had no intention of [Harris] actually receiving back the full value of his investment, through distributions or otherwise.”

According to Harris’ attorneys, the real estate development “has been, at best, a complete boondoggle, and at worst, a complete fraud.”

In 2024, project developers announced that due to “shifting market dynamics,” they had decided to pursue a residential project on the site instead. According to St. John’s attorneys, Harris is one of several investors in the project, which will now include 750 apartments in two 34- and 38-story towers. 90 of those will be low-income units, and there will also be “outdoor, creative, and retail spaces.”

Further, Sasha Frid, an attorney for St. John, told Variety that Harris “actively pursued this development opportunity.”

“Unhappy with the pace of the project, [Harris] chose to pursue private arbitration to assert his discontent,” said Frid. “It’s no secret that due to interest rates and other market factors, real estate projects are taking longer to build. But the development is very much viable and expected to have a $900+ million valuation when completed.”

But those in the Harris camp allege that the $10 million loan was granted with the understanding it would be repaid by the end of January 2025, and both the principal and interest remain unpaid. St. John stepped down as Harris’ financial advisor in April.