‘You could at least kiss me’: Lawsuit reveals decades of employee texts sent to billionaire Marc Lasry in blackmail scheme

Marc Lasry, chairman and chief executive of Avenue Capital. · Fortune · Jeenah Moon—Bloomberg/Getty Images

Billionaire chief executive and chairman Marc Lasry is suing ex-employee Gina Strum, alleging she carried on a decade-long campaign of harassment, lies, and blackmail and is now trying to illicitly siphon millions from Lasry and his firm.

The suit—filed jointly with his sister Sonia Gardner and the firm they cofounded together, Avenue Capital—lists a litany of alleged grievances against Strum, including obsessive and inappropriate texts to Lasry that he repeatedly rebuffed, even as they tried to placate her with phone calls, meetings, and emails. Lasry and Gardner alleged they suffered through it because they feared Strum would carry out her threats to take down both Lasry and the $12 billion global investment firm he built for 30 years alongside his sibling, the complaint states. For years, Strum allegedly alternated between praising the firm when she felt she was on the receiving end of attention and money, and then menacing them when that stopped.

The complaint alleges that Strum recently escalated her threats, saying she would make it “really, really ugly” for Lasry and Avenue Capital unless she was paid $50 million, and would destroy Lasry’s reputation personally. The suit also includes alleged lines from text messages and emails Strum sent to Lasry over the years that the complaint described as “personal, obsessive, and simply inappropriate.” The suit alleges Strum also sent photos and videos of herself to Lasry in low-cut tops, seeking his response.

For instance, Strum allegedly wrote: “U wonder why I love you so much.” And then, “Did you forget about me? My life doesn't really work without you. Stop punishing me.” Plus, “You are a lovebug to me.” Also: “And one more thought- if I had to go through therapy and all this shit just to talk to you. You could at least kiss me. We would know everything then.”

The complaint alleges Strum would compliment Lasry’s appearance, including a black turtleneck that caused her to start “sweating.” She also allegedly told him he looked “cute,” and allegedly updated him when she went to be checked out for “Girly bits.”

Another alleges Strum wrote she was “def lonely and flirting with you.” The complaint states that Lasry apologized to Strum for being lonely, and said he could be a friend to her, “but it can never be more than that.”

The suit says Strum was employed by Avenue Capital from 2009 to 2013 but worked as a consultant on occasion in the years that followed. Strum’s LinkedIn lists her employment with Avenue Capital as managing director from 2009 to 2017. Avenue Capital’s specialty is distressed assets, which includes investing in real estate debt. Lasry has an estimated net worth of almost $2 billion, per Forbes. Unrelatedly, he’s a longtime democratic donor, according to campaign finance data from the Federal Election Commission.