There’s trouble in paradise.
Luxury hotel chain Amanresorts — said to be a favorite of the late Princess Diana — is the subject of a vicious battle for control being waged by its well-heeled investors, including Naomi Campbell’s ex-boyfriend, Vlad Doronin.
Doronin, a Russian billionaire and real estate developer, was ordered on Monday to stop laying claim to the role of CEO of the chain after a second investor sought a temporary restraining order.
If the 44-year-old real estate mogul is found to have breached his investment contract, he could be forced to sell his stake in the chain on the cheap, a source familiar with the case told The Post.
On Monday, London Judge Catherine Newman ruled that Doronin appears to have breached his contract when he replaced Adriaan Zecha, the 81-year-old founder of the 26-year-old Amanresorts, back in May.
“Mr. Doronin has no proper basis for calling himself CEO as matters stand,” the judge said. She ordered Zecha be reinstated and for Doronin to make no more announcements that Zecha has resigned or that the rich Russian is in charge.
In a statement, Doronin said he will “respect the court’s decision,” but that he continues “to strongly challenge the underlying facts of this matter.”
“We look forward to a full hearing on the issues when we will have the opportunity to present our case,” he said.
Amanresorts has properties in 15 countries, mostly in isolated areas like Phuket, Thailand, Bora Bora and Bali.
Despite the properties’ idyllic settings, the atmosphere surrounding the two investors was often cloudy and quite stormy.
The trouble between Doronin and his warring investor, Omar Amanat, who sought the injunction, began before the ink was dry on their deal to buy the luxury hotel chain for $358 million earlier this year, court documents show.
Soon after the deal was inked, Doronin told Amanat, “If I feel that you tried to screw me, I will hunt you down and shoot you,” Amanat told the court, documents reveal.
During their partnership, things got so tense that the Russian billionaire once frisked Amanat — a US investor in “The Twilight Saga” studio Summit Entertainment — to make sure he wasn’t wearing a wire, court papers claim.
Zecha, the resort’s founder, meanwhile, admitted that he promised on April 21 he would resign if the two didn’t stop fighting.
But Zecha said his staff was fired before any formal agreement on the matter was reached.
Zecha said Doronin also tried to boot him from his home of 15 years — claiming it was provided to him by the company and that as he was no longer employed by the company, he was not entitled to the house.
“No 81-year-old, however rich or successful, should be required to vacate his home of 15 years at such short notice,” the judge said in her ruling.
A more complete trial on Doronin’s claim to the throne — among other issues — is scheduled for September.