Dad Sues Mom For 'Tricking' Him Into Believing He Was The Father Of 3 Sons For 21 Years

Dec 02, 2019

Imagine being given a devastating medical diagnosis that both alters your future and basically erases your proudest achievements from the past. That’s just what happened to millionaire Richard Mason. He didn’t take it lying down, but he’s paying a stiff price for it now.

Richard, 55, was the innocent bug stuck in a tangled web of lies spun by his ex-wife. What the UK businessman did once he discovered the deceit would forever change his life and that of his children. It’s turned him into a viral talking point, and some are even calling him the bad guy in the situation. See what you think once you hear the entire story.

Like many, Richard’s first marriage to ex-wife Kate, 54, didn’t work out. He and Kate were raising three children together before their 2008 divorce. By 2016, Richard had remarried, and was planning to add to his family. But their efforts weren’t going so well.

Richard told the Daily Mail that when he began having chest pains, he made a trip to the doctor fully expecting it to be part of a year-long battle with pleurisy. What he discovered, however, would forever change his future and past.

Doctors gave him a devastating diagnosis of cystic fibrosis. The diagnosis was particularly shocking since Richard had been tested for the disease back in the 80s following his sister’s diagnosis, which she ultimately passed away from in 1989. At that time, Richard was told he didn’t have cystic fibrosis.

The bad news wasn’t over though. Doctors then had to tell Richard that 98 percent of male CF patients aren’t fertile, meaning he wouldn’t be having children with his new wife, Emma, and also hadn’t likely fathered his 23-year-old nor 19-year-old twins with his ex-wife.

Still in shock, he immediately texted Kate for answers, calmly assuring her that he just wanted answers and would follow her advice about how to tell them unless she made him undergo testing to get the truth. He even proudly proclaimed that he wanted to stay in their lives.

Kate allegedly instantly replied with adamant denials of wrongdoing, saying that the boys were his despite whatever science suggested. Unconvinced, Richard went to his eldest son with the news, which prompted him to confront his mother.

Kate confessed to an affair during the 20-year marriage, but she remained adamant that safe sex had ensured Richard was the only possible father of her children.

Given all the lies and uncertainty, Richard pursued clarity through a paternity fraud expert. A legal case was launched, which involved family court reviewing the original divorce settlement and Richard seeking damages for paternity fraud.

According to the Daily Mail, medical testing for the case revealed that Richard wasn’t the biological father of the children he spent over 20 years supporting, raising, and loving. While the eldest son actually refused testing, saying Richard is his dad as far as he’s concerned, it was shown that Richard was incapable of producing sperm.

The eldest son had forewarned Richard that he’d never speak to him again if he sued his mom, and he’s held true to his word. Only one of the twins has any communication with Richard now.

Kate had received over $5 million in the original divorce settlement. The paternity fraud case resulted in her paying back almost $500,000 of it to Richard. While the win may have helped his dignity, Richard knows he’s no longer a father, will never be a father, and his name will never biologically continue.

He says the hardest part is watching what he thought was his future now through the distant lens of Facebook, which, without an invite, was the only way he saw the eldest son he raised graduate school. With each new milestone, including what would’ve been his first grandchild being announced, life has felt incomplete for Richard.

He does get a little hope, though, through texts. One son recently reached out to tell him that he’d always be “dad” and expressed his love.

In light of viral backlash from the drama of his life playing out so publicly, Richard admits that his wounded pride was part of the reason for the court case, but he says that none of his decisions were made without careful consideration.

An example, he says, was that he’d have never taken this path if the boys weren’t all adults, and, as such, would hopefully understand this was the decision he needed to make. Another consideration for Richard was setting an example of truthfulness and ending Kate’s secrets and lies.

Do you think Richard did the right thing? What would you have done if faced with possibly losing your health, future, and past in one swoop? Let us know what you think in the comments, and don’t forget to pass this heart-wrenching story along to others.