Shannon Sharpe, podcaster and NFL champion, sued for sexual assault

Shannon Sharpe, a Superbowl champion and host of a well-liked podcast, has been accused of sexual assault in a Nevada lawsuit.

The lawsuit was introduced by a lady who alleges Mr Sharpe used his fame to “manipulate, management, subjugate and violate ladies”.

The accuser, who was 19 on the time she met Mr Sharpe in 2023, says in a authorized submitting that the pair had an almost two-year relationship, throughout which era Mr Sharpe was “aggressive” and allegedly raped her.

Mr Sharpe has denied the allegations and stated he’s the goal of a “shakedown”.

The go well with seeks greater than $50 million (£37.6 million) in compensatory and punitive damages.

The accuser is the one individual suing, and she or he doesn’t present particulars on her accusation that Mr Sharpe harm greater than herself.

Based on the go well with, the lady met Mr Sharpe, presently aged 56, in a Los Angeles health club and had a “rocky consensual relationship”.

“After many months of manipulating and controlling Plaintiff — a lady greater than thirty years youthful than he — and repeatedly threatening to brutally choke and violently slap her, Sharpe refused to just accept the reply no and raped Plaintiff, regardless of her sobbing and repeated screams of ‘no,'” the criticism alleges.

The lady alleges that Mr Sharpe raped her as lately as January.

As well as, she alleges within the go well with that Mr Sharpe insisted on recording a few of the sexual encounters, typically with out her consent or data, shared the movies together with his ” buddies and associates”.

Mr Sharpe has 4 million subscribers to his Membership Shay Shay podcast, and is reportedly in negotiations on a $100m deal for his community of reveals.

“It is a shakedown,” he stated in a video posted to Instagram late Tuesday, addressing the lawsuit. “I’ll be open, clear and defend myself, as a result of this is not proper.”

Mr Sharpe then accused the lady’s lawyer, Tony Buzbee, of submitting a fraudulent lawsuit and threatened to sue for defamation.

Mr Buzbee represented a plaintiff who accused rapper Jay-z of misconduct and in the end rescinded her allegation. He additionally labored with a number of feminine therapeutic massage therapists who accused NFL star Deshaun Watson of sexual assault.

“I imagine he’ll launch a 30-second clip of a intercourse tape that tries to make me look responsible and play into each stereotype you could possibly presumably think about,” Sharpe stated. “That video ought to truly be 10 minutes or so. Hey, Tony, as a substitute of releasing your edit, put the entire video out. I haven’t got it, or I’d myself.”

Final 12 months, Mr Sharpe livestreamed audio of an intimate encounter together with his hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram, and later apologised, saying he had mistakenly turned on the app’s “Reside” function.

Mr Sharpe performed within the NFL for 14 years and gained three Tremendous Bowls. He went on to be inducted into the Professional Soccer Corridor of Fame and has had a protracted sports activities broadcasting profession.