How secret Edelsten obsession led to extortion attempt

Geoffrey Edelsten’s secret obsession with online dating sites and how it led to an alleged extortion attempt has been revealed after ex-wife Brynne Gordon took legal action against the estate of the now-deceased doctor.

While Gordon was portrayed as the love of Edelsten's life in public, she claims he was regularly unfaithful to her and conducted numerous affairs during their relationship, in an affidavit filed in support of her legal action.

In a court document, Gordon said she found out Edelsten was having affairs with other women and that much of the communication he had with them was about transferring money.

I confronted him with emails and phone messages from other women and requested an explanation from him. When I did this he would abuse me and call me names. He called me a ‘whore’ and a ‘gold digger’.

Edelsten died on June 11, 2021, aged 78, leaving an estate valued at just over $1 million. In his will he left nothing to Gordon, whom he officially divorced in early 2015.

Gordon, who is being represented by DSA Law partner Joseph Alesci, is claiming she received no entitlements or settlement after their marriage ended and was also excluded from the will.

Edelsten was known to frequent ‘sugar daddy’ dating sites, using names such as savvy4u2c and contacting people with tempting monikers such as ababydollface10 and serioussweethart.

However, a chain of emails within the affidavit exposes how grubby Edelsten’s secret life had become by mid 2011.

Emails show one woman, with whom he allegedly had a two-year relationship, asking him to buy her expensive cars. She was particularly keen on a Bentley.

“I really, really want this baby car before my birthday, darling,” she wrote. “Please honey, can you call him (the car dealer), let’s get me in this sexy car.”

By mid-September that year, their secret arrangement had soured after he had not separated from Gordon. The woman threatened to go to the police and claim Edelsten had raped her unless her “needs” were met.

I am relentless and trust me sweetie, I will go public. We will be all over TV, 60 Minutes, covers, newspapers. I will press charges for rape.

Edelsten replied that he had not made any promises to the woman, describing her claims as baseless allegations.

Gordon said she confronted Edelsten about the affair when she found sexually explicit correspondence between the two.

When I told Geoffrey I knew of his affair and asked him why he was seeing her, he became verbally abusive towards me. He also called me a ‘whore’ and other degrading names.

Words: Fiona ByrneProducer: Andrew Piva