A member of rocker Marilyn Manson’s entourage was shot and killed after he took out a $1 million life insurance policy on the Hollywood film director Roman Polanski during the 1970s, according to documents obtained by TMZ.
The documents were first obtained by the DailyMail.com.
Polanski fled the United States in 1978 after pleading guilty to statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl.
In 1970, Manson’s assistant, Michael Chaney, represented Polanski, a former actor in “Rosemary’s Baby” and “Chinatown,” to Michael Nelligan, the brother of actor Walter Matthau, in a mutual friend’s Beverly Hills apartment.
The documents allege Nelligan made a personal visit to Nelligan, telling him he was bringing the director to sell his script for a mystery thriller called “E-Chella.”
On the way to dinner with the director, Nelligan allegedly stopped and mentioned the alleged “sexual assault case against Polanski,” according to the documents.
“Polanski denied being accused of any crime,” Nelligan allegedly said, prompting Nelligan to say, “I might want to take it to the bank.”
Six days later, Polanski visited a West Hollywood bank where Nelligan bought a $1 million life insurance policy on him.
Nelligan did not tell the bank where he obtained the insurance policy.
Under threat of a federal lawsuit, Nelligan “melted down” the 40,000-page document – including the insurance policy – according to the TMZ report.
Sources connected to the case claimed Manson was aware Nelligan had taken out the policy, but was not named as a beneficiary in the policy.
“This whole s–t must be seen to be believed,” a source told the website.
The estate of Manson, whose real name is Brian Warner, was not aware of the financial details of Nelligan’s character until last Friday, according to TMZ.