Robert Kraft: Patriots Owner Reportedly a 'Different Person' After Wife's Death

The death of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft left him a changed man.

As the football team owner faces two counts of soliciting prostitution in connection with a human trafficking sting in Florida, reports say he has become a very different person since Myra Kraft's death in 2011.

"Bob Kraft had a fairytale romance with his wife, and they had this incredible marriage," the source told PEOPLE of Kraft's bond with late wife, to whom he was married for 48 years before she died of cancer at age 68 in 2011.

"When she died, he was devastated, and it hit him really hard," the source continues. "Everyone in his world was hit super hard by that."

"But then people were a little bit surprised to see that he moved on fairly quickly," the source says of Kraft's relationship with Ricki Lander, 39, whom he's been dating for six years. "He started dating this much younger woman and a lot of people were raising their eyebrows."

The insider added Kraft "seems like a very different person" as he's struck up new friendships and business deals, including an investment in an e-sports team from the Overwatch League.

Kraft hung out with rapper Meek Mill, whom Kraft visited in prison and publicly defended alongside other celebrities amid Mill's legal battle. The businessman also made headlines for dancing on stage with Cardi B at a party during Super Bowl weekend while she performed her hit song, "Money."

After the New England Patriots won their sixth Super Bowl in early February, Kraft celebrated with the rest of the team, sharing an intimate hug with quarterback Tom Brady.

"Mr. Kraft has been like a second father to me in so many ways," Brady told radio station WEEI in December 2018. "He's been part of so many important events in my life. He was at my wedding. I love him like a dad. He's always around. He does a great job... He provides great guidance and leadership."

Kraft shares four adult sons with his late wife. Myra was remembered as a philanthropist who chaired the board of the Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston.

In September 2012, Kraft told Forbes of his wife's death, "I will always have a broken heart."

Police announced Friday that Kraft had been charged with two counts of soliciting prostitution. The allegations stem from two separate visits by Kraft to the Orchids of Asia Day Spa, which has been identified as part of an alleged human trafficking and prostitution network.

A spokesman for Kraft told the outlet, "We categorically deny that Mr. Kraft engaged in any illegal activity. Because it is a judicial matter, we will not be commenting further."