Kimora Lee Simmons Denies Fraud Allegations + Asks Courts To Dismiss Russell Simmons’ Lawsuit Against Her
Kimora Lee Simmons Denies Fraud Allegations + Asks Courts To Dismiss Russell Simmons’ Lawsuit Against Her
The legal battle between Russell Simmons and Kimora Lee Simmons is still going strong.
As previously reported, Kimora Lee Simmons has been hit with a lawsuit by ex-husband Russell Simmons. Specifically, Russell Simmons accused Kimora Lee Simmons of illegally using his shares from Celsius–an energy drink company–to cover her new husband’s legal fees. Kimora Lee Simmons‘ husband–Tim Leissner, an investment banker she married in 2014–pleaded guilty to money laundering charges back in 2018. To avoid jail time, he agreed to repay the company–1Malaysia Development Berhad–$44 million.
In the original filing, Russell Simmons alleged:
“Knowing full well that Defendant Leissner would need tens of millions of dollars to avoid jail time, stay out on bail and forfeit monies for victim compensation, [Kimora and Tim Leissner] engaged in this blatant fraud to achieve that nefarious and unlawful goal.”
Now, Kimora Lee Simmons is asking the courts to dismiss the case against her. She claims that the Celsius shares in question have not been sold. Instead, they are allegedly only being temporarily held by federal authorities to serve as collateral for Tim Leissner‘s bond. As a result, Kimora believes all fraud accusations against her should be dismissed. Additionally, her lawyer added:
“At the time Defendants used the Celsius shares for purposes of the bond in connection with the federal case, Lee understood and believed that Defendants were authorized to use the shares for the bond.”
It is unclear when the pair is due back in court to discuss the matter.
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