Krista Kennell/ZUMA PressJoe Francis just can't keep his hands off his baby.
The trustee appointed to oversee the Girls Gone Wild empire after it was forced into bankruptcy in February is asking a court for a restraining order to keep GGW founder Francis from meddling in the company's day-to-day affairs and supposedly menacing employees.
Per the lawsuit filed in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Central District of California, plaintiff Todd Neilson accused Francis of making "violent threats" to his old staff and threatening to fire them for failing to obey his commands.
"Since the appointment of the Trustee [Neilson]…Mr. Francis has been verbally abusive to several of the [GGW] employees," state court docs. "The employees of the Debtors believe Mr. Francis to be a violent man. They are afraid to defy him and may soon seek to seek employment elsewhere if they are not provided a safe workplace."
The suit notes that the problem is partly due to the fact that the 40-year-old X-rated video baron still shares office space in Santa Monica with his old firm, resulting in "no physical barriers" between him and the Girls employees.
Neilsen also claims that Francis' actions to exercise control have interfered with his duties in administering the bankruptcy estate, violating the U.S. bankruptcy code's automatic stay rule preventing outsiders from meddling.
The trustee is asking a bankruptcy judge to restrain the entrepreneur from coming within 100 feet of Girls Gone Wild's headquarters and preventing him from "calling, e-mailing, texting, faxing, threatening or otherwise contacting" the company and its employees.
According to court records, no ruling has been issued on the restraining order request.
Francis' attorney, David Houston, could not be reached for comment.
The Girls guru declined to comment on the alleged threats to employees or the office environment.
—Reporting by Claudia Rosenbaum and Sharareh Drury