Vince McMahon, the head of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), resigned following accusations of sex trafficking from a former staff member. Janel Grant claims that in order to attract wrestling talent, Mr. McMahon and another former executive, John Laurinaitis, sexually molested and trafficked her.
After leaving his official role at W.W.E., Mr. McMahon, 78, served as executive chairman of TKO Group, the business’s parent company. The company’s president, Nick Khan, notified W.W.E. staff members by email about the modifications.
A copy of the email that Mr. Khan sent was obtained by The New York Times. “He will no longer have a role with TKO Group Holdings or W.W.E.,” Mr. Khan wrote.
What’s the accusation?
The case was filed on Thursday in the Connecticut U.S. District Court and charges Mr. McMahon with both physical and psychological abuse of Janel Grant, the employee. In addition to the corporation itself, the graphic complaint names John Laurinaitis, a former executive of W.W.E., as a defendant. It alleges, among other things, that Mr. McMahon and Mr. Laurinaitis once alternated in assaulting Ms. Grant.
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In the end, the complaint claims that Mr. McMahon paid Ms. Grant only $1 million but forced her to sign a nondisclosure agreement in exchange for $3 million. In addition, the lawsuit claims that other senior W.W.E. staff members and board members—who were not mentioned in the complaint—were aware of Mr. McMahon’s actions.
Mr. McMahon’s reaction to the accusation
Mr. McMahon denies each and every accusation. “I stand by my prior statement that Ms Grant’s lawsuit is replete with lies, obscene made-up instances that never occurred, and is a vindictive distortion of the truth,” Mr McMahon said in a statement issued on Friday.
He stated: “Out of respect for the WWE Universe, the extraordinary TKO business and its board members and shareholders, partners and constituents, and all of the employees and Superstars who helped make WWE into the global leader it is today, I have decided to resign from my executive chairmanship and the TKO board of directors, effective immediately.”
Previous accusations against Vince McMahon
The most recent complaint against McMahon in a string of accusations of wrongdoing was filed on Thursday. McMahon resigned as WWE CEO in 2022 while the organization looked into his alleged wrongdoings. The investigation focused on allegations that he had paid hush money to an employee with whom he had an affair. McMahon had consented to pay four women over $12 million, according to a Wall Street Journal report from 2022.