Kimora Lee Says Russell Simmons Lawsuit Is A “Desperate PR Ploy”

Two days after, Russell Simmons filed a lawsuit against his ex-wife, Kimora Lee Simmons, claiming she stole shares of his stock to help bond her new husband out of jail.

“Kimora and her children are shocked by the extortive harassment coming from her ex-husband, Russell Simmons, who has decided to sue her for shares and dividends of Celsius stock in which Kimora and Tim Leissner invested millions of dollars,” the statement read. “This is an ill-advised attempt by Russell to use the legal system to access funds he is in no way entitled to, and which his own legal team confirms Russell did not pay for,” Kimora’s legal team said.

“Russell’s continued aggressive behavior not only blatantly distorts the facts, but is simply a desperate PR ploy ignoring the years of mental and emotional anguish, gaslighting, and ongoing harassment he has inflicted on Kimora,” the statement continued. “Russell will be held accountable for his serial abuse, and we will confront his baseless claims that he is warranted Celsius stock dividends despite his self-admitted zero contribution. This extortion attempt is especially egregious given that Russell remains contractually in debt to Kimora for millions of dollars in unpaid business loans. Our team is actively working to put a firm end to his harassment, which continues despite Russell having fled the country – he will face his own in the US court.”

Court documents say Simmons accused his ex-wife and Leissner of unlawfully transferring his funds into their account in 2018, a transaction he didn’t discover until 2019.

Kimora’s new husband pleaded guilty to criminal conspiracy to commit money laundering to steal billions from 1MDB, a Malaysian wealth fund. He forfeited around $44 million to get out of jail time, Forbes reported.

“I am shocked and saddened to see how your side has behaved in response to my repeated attempts to get an agreement from you to rightfully and legally reaffirm my 50% of the Celsius shares, which have been locked up with the government after being used for your husband’s bail money,” Russell wrote in a statement. “This, by the way, having been done under an illegal transfer of my funds that I had no knowledge of and would have never agreed to.”