Billionaire NBA Owner Targeted in Wild Sextortion Scheme
The Daily Beast • • business
Key Points:
- Milwaukee Bucks co-owner Wesley Edens is at the center of an alleged blackmail and extortion case involving entrepreneur Changli “Sophia” Luo, who is charged with blackmail and destruction of records.
- The dispute began after Luo, who initially contacted Edens professionally, had a sexual encounter with him in June 2023, followed by a series of threatening messages and alleged attempts to damage Edens’ reputation.
- Prosecutors claim Luo threatened Edens and his family, falsely accused him of sexual misconduct, and demanded a settlement of $1.25 billion after alleging he gave her a cancer-causing strain of HPV.
- Edens reportedly offered over $6 million to settle the matter without admitting wrongdoing, but Luo rejected the offer and escalated her demands, leading Edens to involve U.S. prosecutors in early 2025.
- FBI agents found two phones during a search of Luo’s apartment in May 2025, including one containing manipulated pornographic images of Edens, highlighting the severity of the alleged extortion plot.