Betrayal Weekly – “Dan & Sage” (December 18, 2025)
Host: Andrea Gunning
Podcast: Betrayal Weekly
Producers: iHeartPodcasts | Glass Podcasts
Overview
This episode of Betrayal Weekly explores an extraordinarily complex, intergenerational story of financial and emotional betrayal within a family. Told from the perspectives of Dan Kimball and his daughter, Sage Kimball, the episode traces how Farah—wife to Dan and mother to Sage—gradually isolated, manipulated, and ultimately left them both reeling after absconding with the family’s entire fortune. Throughout, we witness not only the pain of unraveling trust but also the resilience and healing as Dan and Sage rebuild their relationship in the aftermath.
Main Themes
- The slow erosion of trust and mounting manipulation within a family
- The intersection of faith, feminism, and financial control as a tool for abuse
- Parental alienation and the long-lasting effects of psychological manipulation
- The legal and emotional labyrinth of international financial betrayal
- Healing, reconciliation, and redefining justice between father and daughter
Key Discussion Points and Insights
Childhood, Family Dynamics, and Early Influences (03:41–11:47)
- Sage’s Upbringing: Grew up in Santa Barbara in the 1990s, surrounded by outdoorsy, progressive culture.
- Parents’ Relationship: Farah and Dan bond over a shared love of Buckminster Fuller and ideals of making the world better.
- Evolving Roles:
- Dan described as gentle, stable, curious, supportive.
- Farah is a peace activist, religious, loving, but also capable of sudden sternness.
- Early Red Flags: Farah’s tendency for extremes, rigidity in faith and parenting, and demand for control emerges.
“My dad would be curious about what I was interested in, and then he'd get excited about it... I was really obsessed with, like, space for a little bit, and he, like, built a planetarium with me.”
—Sage Kimball (05:36)
Faith, Activism, and Social Pressures (06:23–13:14)
- The family identifies as Sufi Muslim, hosts large spiritual gatherings.
- Farah’s faith is central to her identity, which she instills deeply in Sage.
- Impressions of “outsider” status, especially post–9/11, and experience of Islamophobia in Santa Barbara.
- The family sells everything and relocates to Bali, Indonesia, seeking acceptance and a new start.
“We all called ourselves Sufis, which is a sect of Islam. We'd have these, like, Sufi gatherings at our house with, like, dancing... Those Sufi parties were a lot of fun.”
—Sage Kimball (06:39)
The Move to Bali & Financial Risks (13:14–15:46)
- The Kimballs invest all their assets (including Dan’s inheritance) into building a sustainable, Indonesian-style “raw food” villa estate.
- Sage, at 14, understands that “buying this property was like everything we had. So, like, you're putting all your eggs in that basket.”
- The family comes together to build, but money is extremely tight.
“Oftentimes people think, oh, you must have been so wealthy to do all that stuff. No, we weren't. We just were brave enough to go do it right. I mean, it was risky...”
—Dan Kimball (26:50)
Gold Bars, Conspiracies, and Financial Secrets (15:46–18:05)
- Farah begins making secretive trips with Sage and the twins to buy gold bars, influenced by conspiracy thinking (Alex Jones, fear of economic collapse).
- Sage is brought into banking and financial tasks, repeatedly told these activities must be kept secret from Dan.
“There was a safety deposit box in Malaysia that her and I had the key to. That was a secret and I wasn't allowed to tell anyone that it existed.”
—Sage Kimball (15:57)
Manipulation and Parental Alienation (18:05–20:09)
- Farah tells Sage and the boys that Dan is a “deadbeat,” doesn’t love them, and is a financial threat (despite evidence to the contrary).
- Sage is manipulated into becoming the signatory on the family trust as part of Farah’s plan for a “matriarchal” financial system.
“She would say to us that, like, your dad doesn't care. He doesn't care about you. He's a deadbeat... I know you love him, but if he cared about you, he would be doing something to protect you.”
—Sage Kimball (18:49)
The Malaysian Move, the Trust, & the Betrayal Unfolds (30:06–41:08)
- Family sells the Bali property for $3 million, moves to Malaysia, and starts over—literally reconstructing their dismantled Bali house.
- A large trust is set up in Malaysia for the whole family, 50/50 between Dan and Farah, but increasingly Dan is excluded.
- Farah, asserting a vision of matriarchal control, systematically pushes Dan out—eventually changing the locks and leaving him homeless and penniless in Malaysia.
- Dan discovers, via an accountant, that all trust shares have been transferred to Farah’s sole name, without his knowledge or consent.
“I go there, try my key. It doesn’t work. And I realized, oh, she's changed the key... I was homeless. It pushed me into homelessness.”
—Dan Kimball (36:52, 37:12)
“They said, well, the shares were transferred into your wife’s name. I said, what? Those are the trust shares... I was just dumbfounded.”
—Dan Kimball (38:49)
Court Case, Emotional Fallout, and Sage’s Awakening (41:08–54:05)
- Dan is forced to sue not only Farah, but also Sage (as signatory to the trust) in Malaysian court.
- Sage, who had been deeply alienated from Dan by Farah’s campaign, is forced to confront two divergent narratives about her parents.
- Therapy and confronting hard evidence help Sage see through years of manipulation.
- Sage refuses to “take sides” by signing documents for her mother that would finalize Dan’s financial exclusion—at great personal and emotional cost.
“It felt like me choosing not to sign it was me choosing to not have a relationship with her... And that was, like, the first time that she truly stopped speaking to me.”
—Sage Kimball (50:18)
“She would pretend she had a knife, and she’d be like, this is what you’re doing to me. Like, stabbing her. Like, it was awful.”
—Sage Kimball (51:42)
- In court, Sage testifies about her mother's manipulation. The court dismisses the case, disregarding her testimony and leaving Dan with no recourse.
“They dismissed the case. How could that be? ...The core part of that shock to me was that they had completely ignored Sage’s testimony. It basically said in there, she's not believable.”
—Dan Kimball (54:42, 55:32)
Aftermath, Healing, and Rebuilding (58:55–63:23)
- Dan returns to the U.S., nearly destitute, living on his late father’s small inheritance and Social Security.
- Sage steps away from religion, focusing on personal healing and understanding the difference between faith and its abuses.
- Dan and Sage rebuild their bond through honesty, therapy, and shared life—emphasizing the value of their relationship over lost wealth.
“One of the things that I think was extremely positive about this was that suddenly Sage and I could have a relationship that was based on truth.”
—Dan Kimball (59:41)
“The justice that we have is that we have this relationship which is more valuable than any of the money or any of the things. And she doesn’t get to have that.”
—Sage Kimball (62:05)
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
On Alienation and Manipulation
“I was alienated from my dad for years because she told me he wasn’t trustworthy.”
—Sage Kimball (46:03)
On Parental Betrayal
“I was so intertwined with what [my mother] wanted. I don’t think I was even always told what I was doing. I just did whatever she asked me to do.”
—Sage Kimball (16:28)
On the Power of Therapy and Truth
“It was through therapy that I started to set boundaries with her. And then it’s over.”
—Sage Kimball (51:13)
On Rebuilding
“Suddenly Sage and I could have a relationship that was based on truth... I could be a parent again.”
—Dan Kimball (59:41)
On Justice
“It may not be just. I mean, justice doesn’t have to exist. It sometimes doesn’t.”
—Dan Kimball (61:59)
“The justice that we have is that we have this relationship which is more valuable than any of the money or any of the things.”
—Sage Kimball (62:05)
On Telling Their Story
“How can I be better as a result of the impact of this? ...We should build a better world and design a better world. So I’d like to go from an understanding of this betrayal to building a blueprint for a better world.”
—Dan Kimball (63:29)
“All of this is not to make her the devil... It’s more to be able to share our experiences and be 100% truthful.... And I think part of that is being heard and believed. I’m sorry he had to go through what he’s going through, because he didn’t deserve it.”
—Sage Kimball (63:57)
Important Timestamps
- 03:41 – Dan and Sage introduce the start of their family’s story
- 05:36 – Sage on her close relationship with her curious, supportive dad
- 07:02 – Sage describes unique childhood as a white Muslim girl in Santa Barbara
- 13:07 – The family risks everything to build a new life in Bali
- 15:57; 16:24 – The secrecy of gold bars, banking, and mounting financial isolation
- 18:16; 18:49 – Farah begins campaign to convince kids their father is unloving and a threat
- 20:09 – Dan reflects on being totally in the dark about what’s happening
- 36:52; 37:12 – Dan comes home to find the locks changed: “I was homeless. It pushed me into homelessness.”
- 38:49 – Dan discovers the trust has been fully transferred to Farah
- 46:03–47:12 – Sage on the years of alienation and the conflicting stories she receives
- 50:18; 51:13 – Sage’s refusal to sign a crucial document and her resulting estrangement from her mother
- 54:42–55:32 – Malaysian court dismisses the case, ignoring Sage’s testimony
- 59:41 – Dan and Sage reflect on finally having an honest, restored relationship
- 62:05 – Sage defines the true justice as the restoration of their bond, not the recovery of lost assets
- 63:29–63:57 – Why they chose to tell their story publicly
Conclusion
The Kimball family saga is a wrenching look into the long-term, slow-motion effects of betrayal—how secrets, manipulation, and the abuse of ideology can destroy not just finances, but relationships and self-concept. Yet the episode ends with hope: Dan and Sage, after the loss of so much, reclaim what matters most—a relationship rooted in honesty and love. Their story stands as a powerful cautionary tale and a blueprint for resilience, emphasizing the possibility of healing even after unimaginable pain.
For community, resources, and more stories of resilience, visit betrayal.substack.com.