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A former WWE employee who is suing the company and its former CEO, Vince McMahon, made new and graphic allegations in a filing in the U.S. District Court of Connecticut earlier this week.
Janel Grant, who filed her initial lawsuit against WWE, McMahon and former executive John Laurinaitis, detailed more claims about how she was allegedly recruited to work for WWE, the alleged “abuse” she received while WWE leaders allegedly did nothing, and other claims.
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World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. Chairman Vince McMahon appears in the ring during the WWE Monday Night Raw show at the Thomas & Mack Center on August 24, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Laurinaitis was previously dropped from the lawsuit.
Pak Gazette Digital has reached out to McMahon’s attorney and WWE for comment.
Grant, who worked at WWE from June 2019 to 2022, alleged that she was “subjected to repeated physical and emotional abuse, sexual assault and sex trafficking perpetrated” by McMahon and that “most senior officials and talent knew about and facilitated the abuse” she experienced.
“Instead of protecting Ms. Grant, WWE and McMahon conspired to use their coercive control over her to conceal the wrongdoing of their leaders and prohibit Ms. Grant from speaking or seeking help,” the lawsuit reads.
Grant made allegations of having “violent” sexual encounters with McMahon and others.
“Throughout the three years, the sex was violent, invasive, degrading, and produced injuries that could not heal because there were constantly subsequent violent encounters, often involving other men or objects,” the lawsuit reads. “Ms. Grant did not make a complaint about her abuse because she was living in a state of pressure and was completely under McMahon’s control, and her survival ultimately depended on her complete submission to McMahon.”
WWE owner Vince McMahon enters the arena during WrestleMania at AT&T Stadium on April 3, 2022 in Arlington, Texas.
(Joe Camporeale/USA TODAY Sports)
DASHCAM VIDEO SHOWS FORMER WWE EXECUTIVE VINCE MCMAHON REARING A VEHICLE ON CONNECTICUT HIGHWAY
Grant claimed in the lawsuit that McMahon pressured her into signing a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) and that he allegedly sexually assaulted her after she signed the document.
The sordid allegations are part of an ongoing lawsuit between the parties.
McMahon resigned as CEO of WWE in 2022 and resigned from TKO in 2024 after the initial lawsuit was filed. He has maintained his innocence throughout the process.
“The complaint’s outrageous claims of sexual abuse and coercion are pure fiction, clearly intended to generate publicity, and are flatly contradicted by Plaintiff’s own contemporaneous statements,” McMahon said in an April 2024 filing. “Contrary to Plaintiff’s false allegations, Plaintiff and Defendant (collectively, the ‘Parties’) entered into a consensual relationship during which Defendant never forced Plaintiff to do anything and never mistreated her. no way.
“In fact, in a love letter that plaintiff wrote to defendant shortly before the parties ended their relationship, plaintiff described defendant as ‘[m]My best friend, my love, and my everything,” praising him for being the “wonderful, tender, vulnerable, heart-on-your-sleeve soul that you truly are.” It is incredulous that the plaintiff, a then-42-year-old woman who claims on her resume to have a law degree from Pace University, wrote these words to the defendant months after all of the events in the lawsuit of alleged abuse, coercion, and ‘sex trafficking’ occurred.”
TKO CEO Vince McMahon appears during a ceremony at the New York Stock Exchange in New York City on January 23, 2024, announcing that Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has joined TKO’s board of directors. (Michelle Farsi/Zuffa LLC)
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TKO Group told The Associated Press in January 2024 that it took Grant’s allegations “very seriously.”
“Mr. McMahon does not control TKO or supervise the day-to-day operations of WWE,” the company said at the time. “While this matter predates our TKO executive team’s tenure at the company, we take Ms. Grant’s horrific allegations very seriously and are addressing this matter internally.”
