Co-Owner of NBA Team Is 'Victim-1' in Sextortion Case

A billionaire basketball team owner's private life is about to get a very public airing in federal court. Wesley Edens, co-founder of Fortress Investment Group and co-owner of the Milwaukee Bucks, has been identified as the previously unnamed "Victim-1" in an alleged billion-dollar extortion scheme tied to a brief sexual relationship, his spokesman confirmed to the Wall Street Journal. Prosecutors say Edens met Changli "Sophia" Luo, a New York-based entrepreneur and nonprofit founder, via LinkedIn in 2022; they later had sex at her apartment in June 2023.

What followed, according to the indictment, was a monthslong campaign of threats in which Luo, now 46, allegedly demanded as much as $1.215 billion and vowed to "destroy" Edens by publicizing sex videos and photos, contacting his family, and approaching investors and the media. Edens went to law enforcement, citing safety concerns. Luo has pleaded not guilty to charges including blackmail and destruction of records; her lawyers say she was pursuing justice and compensation over what they call an "inappropriate and aggressive" encounter. A trial is expected to take place later this year. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, meanwhile, reports that news of the alleged extortion came on the same day that Edens' daughter Mallory repped the Bucks at the NBA draft lottery.