WWE’s Vince McMahon Sued for Sexual Assault and Trafficking

Vince McMahon is accused of sexual assault and trafficking in a brand new lawsuit filed by a former worker in opposition to the WWE founder and his wrestling firm.

In 2022, McMahon introduced he was stepping down from the WWE amid an inside investigation that discovered allegations of a hush-money fee to a former worker, with McMahon allegedly paying a secret $3 million to the then-unnamed feminine, a WWE paralegal, to maintain their “consensual” affair personal.

Nevertheless, on Thursday, the girl — Janel Grant, who was employed within the specifically made function of “administrator-coordinator” in WWE’s authorized division — filed a lawsuit in opposition to McMahon, WWE head of expertise relations John Laurinaitis, and the wrestling firm outlining years of alleged sexual assaults.

Among the many extra startling allegations within the lawsuit, obtained by Rolling Stone, is McMahon’s calls for that Grant make herself sexually out there to each himself and Laurinaitis, in addition to an unnamed “WWE Company Officers” and a “WWE Celebrity.”

“Given McMahon’s all-powerful place at WWE, coercion was inherent in his more and more wicked sexual calls for,” the lawsuit states. “Particularly, whereas McMahon was CEO of WWE and Ms. Grant was employed as an entry stage coordinator within the authorized division, McMahon recruited people to have sexual relations with Ms. Grant and/or with the 2 of them, directed Ms. Grant to go to Defendant Laurinaitis previous to the beginning of workdays for sexual encounters, and anticipated and directed Ms. Grant to interact in sexual exercise on the WWE headquarters, even throughout working hours.”

McMahon additionally, per the go well with, “subjected Ms. Grant to acts of maximum cruelty and degradation that brought about Ms. Grant to disassociate and/or turn into numb to actuality with the intention to survive the horrific encounters.”

In maybe essentially the most surprising declare, Grant alleges that on Could 9, 2020, McMahon “defecated on Ms. Grant throughout a threesome, after which commanded her to proceed pleasuring his ‘good friend’— with feces in her hair and working down her again—whereas McMahon went to the toilet to bathe off. Upon his return from the toilet, McMahon and his ‘good friend’ actively resumed the threesome, which lasted over an hour and a half, whereas Ms. Grant remained lined in McMahon’s filth. When McMahon’s ‘good friend’ left, McMahon ordered her to remain and to proceed to sexually gratify him.”

The lawsuit additionally cites a June 2021 incident the place McMahon and Laurinaitis “cornered her and pulled her in between them, forcibly touched her, earlier than finally placing her on prime of a desk in between them. She begged them to cease, however they pressured themselves on her, every taking turns restraining her for the opposite, whereas saying ‘No means sure’ and ‘Take it, bitch.’”

Reps for McMahon and the WWE didn’t instantly reply to Rolling Stone’s request for remark.

Grant first met McMahon in March 2019, a time when, based on the go well with, she “was coping with profound grief and struggling financially – after devoting years to around-the-clock caregiving, her mother and father handed away. On prime of that, she was unemployed and her household house was misplaced in her mother and father’ chapter.” She and McMahon lived in the identical condo constructing, the lawsuit says, and the constructing’s resident supervisor provided to attach Grant with McMahon with the hope of discovering employment inside WWE.

“McMahon befriended Ms. Grant, giving her hopes of a brand new life with guarantees of a yet-to-be-determined function at WWE, and showering her with consideration and assurances, together with items like a VIP expertise at WrestleMania,” the lawsuit states. “However what appeared like a dream within the Spring of 2019 rapidly grew to become a nightmare. As McMahon dangled career-making and life-changing guarantees in entrance of Ms. Grant, he demonstrated an growing lack of boundaries. Throughout a number of conferences that have been ostensibly a couple of potential job at WWE, he greeted her in his underwear, touched her, repeatedly requested for hugs, and spent hours sharing intimate particulars about his private life.” 

McMahon can be accused of displaying sexually express images and video of Grant to fellow WWE staff, together with “a world-famous athlete and former UFC Heavyweight Champion with whom WWE was actively attempting to signal to a brand new contract (and finally did signal that contract).” “Unsurprisingly, others at WWE knew what was happening. However as an alternative of intervening to guard Ms. Grant, WWE actively sought to hide the wrongdoing,” the lawsuit states.

By 2022, McMahon’s spouse Linda, a member of the Trump administration’s cupboard, discovered about Vince and Grant’s sexual relationship and, as he informed Grant, threatened to divorce him. Because of this, McMahon lobbied Grant to signal the NDA that finally led to his (non permanent) departure from the WWE; he returned to the corporate’s board of administrators in January 2023, lower than six months after he “retired.”

After Grant’s $3 million NDA was lastly signed after weeks of authorized “wordsmithing,” Grant went to McMahon’s apartment to “assessment excellent enterprise gadgets.” As soon as there, nonetheless, McMahon allegedly “commanded” Grant “to do ‘one very last thing’ and get ‘in your knees.’”

“As Ms. Grant knelt on the onerous ground, barely just a few toes away from the entrance door, McMahon opened his gown and ordered her to ‘Eat him!’ McMahon grabbed the again of Ms. Grant’s head and slammed her face into his crotch a pair instances till she gagged and pushed him away, telling him to cease and that she couldn’t breathe,” the lawsuit alleges. 

“McMahon responded that she wouldn’t get away that simply and held her head as he pressured himself again in her mouth till she had no air. Ms. Grant tried to push him away however he held her head firmly in place and loudly commanded her to ‘Lookup!’ adopted by ‘Take it, bitch.’ They momentarily made eye contact earlier than McMahon’s power brought about Ms. Grant’s physique to convulse and retch with tears streaming down her face. McMahon then launched his maintain and closed his gown as she stood up. After leaving, Ms. Grant by no means noticed McMahon once more.”

Grant’s lawsuit states that McMahon later didn’t dwell as much as the phrases of the NDA, together with making the negotiated funds. That, in addition to the Speaks Out Act that makes the nondisclosure act unenforceable, brought about Grant to file the lawsuit.

“The extreme restrictions of the NDA have created a wedge in all of Ms. Grant’s relationships and left her in a perpetual state of isolation, as her household has handed away and he or she can’t (and doesn’t) lean on the assist of the group as a result of NDA’s restrictions,” the lawsuit added. 

“Additional, Ms. Grant has skilled weight reduction, insomnia, rashes, flashbacks to her exploitation, nightmares, panic assaults, and melancholy. Ms. Grant will go days with out brushing her enamel, having a shower, or washing her garments. On many days, she doesn’t go away her mattress.”