Stan Lee: Ex-manager of comic book legend charged with elder abuse

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Stan Lee and Keya Morgan attend the 'Avengers: Infinity War' World Premiere on April 23, 2018 in Los Angeles, California.Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Stan Lee (left) became close to Mr Morgan (right) after his wife's death

The former manager of comic book co-creator Stan Lee has been charged with elder abuse against the late writer.

Keya Morgan is facing five counts of abuse against Lee - including false imprisonment, fraud and forgery - all stemming from an incident last summer.

The Marvel superhero visionary died in November last year aged 95.

A spokesperson for Los Angeles Superior Court confirmed an arrest warrant for Mr Morgan - who is yet to comment - had been issued.

Lee, who first helped dream up The Fantastic Four for Marvel Comics in 1961 and went on to co-create titles including Spider-Man and The Incredible Hulk, endured faltering eyesight and memory loss towards the end of his life.

His final few months were marred by conflicting claims over who was running his affairs.

New York memorabilia dealer Mr Morgan, 42, became close to Lee after the death of his wife, Joan, who died in 2017, also aged 95.

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Stan Lee with his wife Joan, who died in 2017, also aged 95

The charges follow previous filings against Mr Morgan in May and June last year, including falsely reporting an emergency and falsely reporting a crime, along with a probation violation.

This culminated in a judge granting a restraining order brought by Lee's family, after Mr Morgan was accused of moving the magnate out of his home at midnight to isolate him from his caregivers.

Speaking to Variety, external at the time, Mr Morgan denied the accusations.

Image source, Disney
Image caption,

The Marvel Avengers film franchise features many of Lee's comic book co-creations

A previous attempt to obtain a restraining order had been rejected after the attorney pursuing the order, Tom Lallas, was accused of acting without Lee's consent.

The superhero creations Lee helped to inspire have since formed the foundation of Marvel's record-breaking cinematic universe.

The most recent release, Avengers: Endgame, broke box office world records and became the fastest film ever to break the $1 billion barrier, doing so in just five days.

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