Richard Rodriguez/Getty Dak Prescott has filed a lawsuit accusing a woman and her lawyers of an "extortion plot."
Dallas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott has filed a $1 million lawsuit against a woman and her lawyers accusing them of taking part in a “brazen” $100 million “extortion plot” to extort him through sexual assault accusations.
Prescott filed the lawsuit, which can be read in full here, in Collin County, Texas, on March 11, 2024. According to the Prescott’s attorneys the woman, Victoria Baileigh Shores, and her lawyers, Bethel Zehaie and Yoel Zehaie, “have threatened to go public with a completely fabricated story of sexual assault from nearly a decade ago and demanded that Mr. Prescott immediately pay $100 million in exchange for her not pressing false charges with the authorities.”
Prescott’s attorney, Levi McCathern, of the firm McCathern Shokouhi Evans, said in a statement emailed to Heavy, “Mr. Prescott — a new father to a baby girl — has great empathy for survivors of sexual assault. He fervently believes that all perpetrators of such crimes should be punished to the fullest extent of the law. To be clear, Mr. Prescott has never engaged in any nonconsensual, sexual conduct with anyone. Lies hurt. Especially, malicious lies. We will not allow the Defendant and her legal team to profit from this attempt to extort millions from Mr. Prescott.”
Prescott and his girlfriend, Sarah Jane Ramos, revealed that she was pregnant in November 2023.
Shores’ attorney, Bethel Zehaie, told NBC DFW that her client is accusing Prescott of sexually assaulting her in 2017, after Prescott’s rookie season, outside XTC Cabaret in Dallas. Zehaie added that Shores, a 28-year-old Fort Worth resident, didn’t work at the club and didn’t file a police report at the time she says the incident occurred. Shores’ lawyers said in a statement that they stand by her accusations.
The Lawsuit Includes an Email Sent to Dak Prescott by the Accuser’s Lawyers in January 2024
NFL officials are aware of the news reports regarding Dak Prescott allegations but will decline comment.
In the lawsuit, Prescott’s attorneys included an email, which they refer to as an “extortionary letter,” sent to the Cowboys QB on January 16, 2024, that included accusations that he sexually assaulted Shores on February 2, 2017. According to Prescott’s lawyers, the email was “bizarrely” sent to a third party at Mississippi State University where Prescott played college football.
The email states that Prescott and Shores met through her employment and began communicating on Snapchat before he invited her to “hang out.”
According to the email, Prescott and two members of his “entourage” met with Shores and female friends in Plano. When Shores was with Prescott and the two members of his entourage in his SUV, the email says, Prescott directed her to the furthest back row. According to the email, Shores is accusing Prescott of exposing his genitalia.
“Ms. Shores did not want to engage in sexual intercourse and made sure to verbalize her wishes. Afterwards, the car came to a stop at your destination. Once this occurred, everyone got out of the car except you, and you further signaled one of your entourage members to leave you and Ms. Shores alone,” Shores’ attorneys wrote. “At this point, you used physical force and sexually assault Ms. Shores.”
The email added, “Ms. Shores has had to live with this pain and trauma for 7 years. It affected her relationship with her fiance and her everyday existence so much that she had to attend therapy and counseling and will require future therapy and counseling. She has suffered mental anguish that is unimaginable dealing with the trauma of being a sexual assault victim.”
The lawyers said in the email, “Despite the tragic events, she is willing to forego pursuing criminal charges, along with disclosing this information to the public, in exchange for compensating her for the mental anguish she has suffered. Ms. Shores’s damages are valued at the sum of $100,000,000.00. You have until February 16, 2024, to respond to this demand letter.”
Prescott’s Lawyers Noted in the Lawsuit That the ‘Extortion’ Email Was Sent Ahead of the Start of NFL Free Agency
The lawsuit filed by Prescott says, “Sexual assault is a despicable crime that no person should ever endure. Mr. Prescott—a new father to his baby girl—has great empathy for survivors of sexual assault and believes fervently that all perpetrators of such crimes should be punished to the fullest extent of the law. With that said, Mr. Prescott has never engaged in any nonconsensual sexual behavior with anyone. Indeed, Defendants’ false claims in this regard undermine the courage of actual sexual assault survivors everywhere as well as the legitimacy of the horrific traumas they have endured.”
The lawsuit adds that Prescott “has established himself as a solid role model and pillar of the community.” His lawyers wrote in the lawsuit:
Now, at the height of Mr. Prescott’s success, Defendants and her legal team have unleashed a campaign of extortion and defamation, threatening to go public with a completely fabricated story of sexual assault from nearly a decade ago and demanding that Mr. Prescott immediately pay $100,000,000, in exchange for her silence. Defendants’ horrible lies not only threaten to destroy the legitimate legacy of a great man and cost him tens of millions of dollars, but Defendants’ conduct is criminal.
As such, Mr. Prescott has reported Defendants’ criminal actions to the appropriate authorities and will continue to cooperate fully in their investigation. Further, Mr. Prescott is forced to file the instant case to bring the truth to light, defend his new family, and promote our society’s collective progress in support of legitimate survivors of sexual assault.
His attorneys added, “The alleged assault occurred on or around February 2, 2017 following the end of Mr. Prescott’s rookie season in the NFL as the quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. At the time of the alleged assault, Mr. Prescott was single, and in fact, the timeline of events and Defendant Shores’s actions in the seven years since the alleged assault are consistent with being involved with only consensual actions with Mr. Prescott. The fact that Mr. Prescott did not hear a single negative thing about this supposed interaction from nearly a decade ago is truly telling of Defendants’ motive.”
The lawsuit accuses Shores and her attorneys of defamation and slander, defamation per se, civil extortion/duress, business disparagement, tortious interference with current and/or prospective business relations, civil conspiracy and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
The lawsuit notes, “Defendants were aware of the existence of these economic relationships and intended to interfere with and disrupt them, particularly ahead of the NFL’s free agency period opening on March 13, 2024.” Prescott has been involved in contract extension talks with the Cowboys.
Victoria Shores’ Lawyers Say ‘Dak Is a Liar’ & That She Plans to Filed Her Own Criminal Complaint Against Him
Bethel Zehaie said in a statement on March 12, “Dak is a liar and a rapist. In our initial conversations with his lawyer, Levi, he adamantly denied knowing our client. In our next conversation just a week or so later, not only did he confirm knowing Ms. Shores, but also confirmed that he was with her the same night she was sexually assaulted. Not one time prior to this lawsuit being filed did he deny this incident.”
She added, “We stand by the truth. Dak and his lawyers are trying to be bullies and play hardball and victim blame. We are not afraid of the truth. Victoria has had to attend therapy and endure trauma because of the sexual assault. This young lady was in absolute tears in my office. Dak needs to be held accountable for his behavior. We are not afraid of him or his legal team.”
According to NBC DFW, Shores’ attorneys added that she plans on filing her own criminal complaint against Prescott.
The Cowboys haven’t commented about the lawsuit. Police in Dallas and Collin County have also not commented about the case and whether investigators are looking into the dueling accusations made by Prescott and Shores.
According to Prescott’s attorneys, the Cowboys QB has committed to donating any money won in the lawsuit to the Joyful Heart Foundation, “whose vision is a world free of sexual assault, domestic violence, and child abuse or another like-minded organization,” in a “a show of support for legitimate survivors of sexual assault.” His attorneys added that the “false claims undermine the courage of actual sexual assault survivors everywhere, as well as the legitimacy of the horrific traumas they have endured.”
According to its website, the Joyful Heart Foundation was started by “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” star Mariska Hargitay.