In a lawsuit, a former WWE staff member charges Vince McMahon of abuse, sexual assault, and trafficking.
A former employee of World Wrestling Entertainment filed a complaint on Thursday, alleging abuse and sex trafficking against the corporation, its creator, Vince McMahon, and a former official of WWE.
Former WWE employee Janel Grant claimed in her lawsuit that she was “the victim of sexual assault, physical and emotional abuse, and trafficking at WWE.” The U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut received the lawsuit.
Attorney Ann Callis for Plaintiff Janel Grant said in a statement to NBC News that “today’s complaint seeks to hold accountable two WWE executives who sexually assaulted and trafficked Plaintiff Janel Grant, as well as the organization that facilitated or turned a blind eye to the abuse and then swept it under the rug.” “She is a very brave and private individual who has endured great suffering at the hands of Mr. McMahon and Mr. Laurinaitis.”
According to Callis, Grant hopes that the lawsuit will shield other women from abuse.
The complaint is “filled with lies, obscene made-up instances that never occurred, and a vindictive distortion of the truth,” according to a McMahon representative. He’ll put up a fierce fight for himself.
A representative for TKO Group Holdings, the parent company of WWE, stated in a statement that “Mr. McMahon does not control TKO nor does he oversee the day-to-day operations of WWE.” We take Ms. Grant’s horrifying accusations extremely seriously and are handling this internally, even though it predates the term of our TKO management team at the firm.
A request for comment from the other former executive mentioned in the case, John Laurinaitis, was not immediately answered.
Allegations of civil battery, sex trafficking, deliberate or negligent infliction of mental distress, and carelessness are included in the lawsuit.
The lawsuit claims that when Grant first met McMahon in March 2019 as the CEO of the business, he “dangled career-making and life-changing promises” and behaved in an increasingly inappropriate manner toward her.
According to the lawsuit, McMahon pressured Grant to have a sexual connection in exchange for a job guarantee at WWE. Grant claimed that she “felt trapped in an impossible situation” where she had to comply with his advances or risk financial ruin.
The lawsuit states that “Ms. Grant feared she had everything to lose and faced negative consequences no matter what happened.”
According to the lawsuit, Grant eventually got to know McMahon on a personal level and was hired by the WWE.
The lawsuit claimed that despite Ms. Grant’s attempts to end the sexual relationship and her expressions of unhappiness, she had no idea how vile it would become or how the physical abuse and psychological torture would make her feel trapped, helpless, and alone. She also learned that McMahon expected the physical relationship to continue as part of her job.
According to the lawsuit, McMahon started posting obscene photos and videos of Grant with anonymous males both inside and outside the professional wrestling organization in 2020.
“Coercion was inherent in his increasingly depraved sexual demands,” according to the lawsuit, because McMahon was the CEO of WWE at the time and Grant held an entry-level position there.
It is said that McMahon enlisted other people, including Laurinaitis, to engage in sexual encounters with Grant. According to the lawsuit, Grant was expected to have intercourse at the WWE headquarters, sometimes even during business hours.
As Grant begged them to stop, the lawsuit claims that McMahon and Laurinaitis sexually abused her inside her office while other “colleagues were busy at their desks.”
In the lawsuit, Grant further asserts that other WWE employees were aware of the violation but “actively sought to conceal the wrongdoing.”
Grant claimed in her lawsuit that McMahon’s wife learned of their connection in January 2022 and that he put her under “immense pressure” to sign a nondisclosure agreement barring Grant from discussing the sexual misbehavior. As a result, Grant alleged she was fired from the company.
In return for payments, which McMahon gradually ceased making, she eventually signed the NDA, according to the lawsuit. The quantity and frequency of the payments were not specified in the lawsuit.
In addition to asking for compensatory and punitive damages, the lawsuit aims to have the NDA void.
According to the lawsuit, in March 2022, McMahon made an attempt to introduce her to an unidentified WWE star even after she was fired from the organization.
According to the lawsuit, Ms. Grant has been left “physically and mentally crippled” by the alleged abuse and predatory behavior, and she also experiences “debilitating symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.”
Following media reports of McMahon’s involvement in a hush money payment scandal, WWE is accused of trying to “sweep the matter under the rug” by announcing a special committee or its board of directors to look into the alleged malfeasance, according to the lawsuit.
Despite stating she would comply, Grant said in the lawsuit that the special committee never spoke with her or asked for any papers.
The lawsuit claimed that McMahon and Laurinaitis “groomed and coerced Ms. Grant, and the WWE stood by and facilitated efforts to keep Ms. Grant employed by WWE to ensure McMahon’s continued sexual exploitation.”
Last year, World Wrestling Entertainment declared that McMahon, who is also a major shareholder, will be added back to the board of the business.
Following an investigation that revealed McMahon had paid four women approximately $15 million over a 16-year period to allay allegations of sexual misconduct, the company first fired McMahon as CEO in 2022.
As a majority shareholder, McMahon continued to have influence over the business even while he was on leave. WWE stated that “Mr. McMahon can effectively exercise control over our affairs” in a regulatory filing from November.
