Disclaimer: The following article contains sensitive material.
It was another big day in the wrestling world, but not with good news. The pro wrestling world was hit with the news that Vince McMahon was accused of Sex Trafficking by a WWE Staffer he paid to keep quiet. The Wall Street Journal first published the story.
Janel Grant broke her silence about the relationship she had with McMahon with disturbing allegations that include charges that the wrestling magnate defecated on her head during a threesome in May 2020 and sex trafficked her to other WWE executives, according to the complaint filed in Connecticut federal court on Thursday.
The complaint includes text messages that Vince Mahon sent her during their relationship. Some of those text messages are graphic in detail.
THREAD 1/2 (TW):
Screenshots of Vince McMahon’s messages from the new sex trafficking lawsuit: pic.twitter.com/pqx78GHSwU
— Wrestle Ops (@WrestleOps) January 25, 2024
Ms. Grant’s lawsuit comes after the Wall Street Journal reported last year that World Wrestling Entertainment was investigating an alleged $3 million payment from McMahon to a departing female employee following a consensual affair. But it was far from consensual, as McMahon claims.
In January 2022, McMahon told Grant that his wife, Linda McMahon, knew about their relationship and asked her to sign an NDA (non-disclosure agreement). Grant did that. At the time, Ms. Grant was unnamed and claims she received an initial installment of $1 million to keep quiet about their relationship, but no further payments followed as described in the new lawsuit.
Back in July 2022, the Wall Street Journal reported on Vince McMahon being accused of sexual assault and misconduct allegations. WWE forced McMahon to step down from the Board of Directors, Head of Creative Control, and CEO of the company. The Board of Directors did an internal investigation and found even more hush money that was given out to employees with whom McMahon had sexual relationships.
A subsequent investigation found that McMahon paid $14.6 million to several women who accused him of sexual misconduct. McMahon was forced to pay that money back to the company, and SEC filings had to be redone because McMahon used company funds to keep those women quiet.
Even though the WWE did its own internal investigation into the allegations of Vince McMahon’s sexual assault allegations in November 2022, the lawsuit claims it was a sham. Grant says she was never contacted by the company concerning it despite stating she was willing to participate.
The lawsuit alleges Grant met McMahon in March 2019 and was looking for a job after her parents died. She felt pressured into a sexual relationship with McMahon due to threats he would use his legal resources against her if she did not. Over time, McMahon’s demands grew increasingly depraved through her employment with the company from 2019 to 2021.
According to the report, McMahon would schedule meetings with Grant to speak about possible job opportunities and at one meeting, he greeted her in only his underwear. McMahon allegedly laughed when Grant turned away from him. He then requested she help him put on a shirt. At another meeting, he began massaging her lower back while continuing to make promises about future employment.
In the spring of 2019, McMahon allegedly began “demonstrating an increasing lack of boundaries” toward Grant as he continued to promise her employment at WWE. She was named “administrator-coordinator” on June 17, 2019. She was later transferred to Talent Relations on March 9, 2021.
Through all this trauma, Ms. Grant has endured profound suffering in silence, feeling of exploitation, loss of security, and the fear of facing the wrath of WWE and McMahon’s army of attorneys if she were to come forward and bring to light the egregious acts detailed herein. That time has passed, and Ms. Grant seeks to hold Defendants accountable for their reprehensible and unlawful acts, for her own sake and for others.
The lawsuit claims she was also expected to engage in sexual encounters with John Laurinaitis during her employment. In addition, the lawsuit states that beginning in March 2020, McMahon began sharing sexually explicit pictures and videos of Grant with people inside and outside the company. It was also mentioned that one of the people these were shared with was a former UFC Heavyweight Champion. Another was a WWE referee.
The lawsuit continues:
Additionally, this Complaint details encounters during which McMahon caused Ms. Grant to sustain physical injuries, including bleeding and pain, from forceful use of sex toys. Despite Ms. Grant’s plea to cease any further sexual activity, the number of sexual encounters increased, as did McMahon’s physical aggression during them.
Notably, McMahon was most aggressive when using the certain sex toys named after male WWE wrestlers and performers. McMahon named the sex toys so that the color of the toy matched the race of the wrestler.
The lawsuit continues to state that McMahon’s sexual demands became increasingly depraved. Grant tried to stop their physical encounters, but McMahon refused.
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The suit cited a July 2020 text that others at WWE wanted to have sex with her after seeing photos on McMahon’s phone, and the group laughed when he told them, “She may scream and try to say NO!! Although it would B difficult to say with a c– down her throat.”
THREAD 1/2 (TW):
Screenshots of Vince McMahon’s messages from the new sex trafficking lawsuit: pic.twitter.com/pqx78GHSwU
— Wrestle Ops (@WrestleOps) January 25, 2024
The lawsuit continues that McMahon sent Grant to a “Celebrity Doctor” for hour-long appointments that included “deep dives into her personal and work life.”
In November 2020, McMahon was alleged to have given Grant an ultimatum to either have a sexual encounter in his office or inside the parked car.
Soon after, McMahon began directing Grant to have sexual encounters with Laurinaitis before the start of workdays. She was also expected to engage in sexual activity at WWE headquarters during work hours. She was officially reassigned to work under Laurinaitis beginning in January 2021.
According to the lawsuit, McMahon instructed Grant to “obey” Laurinatis if he requested bringing in more men for their encounters.
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During an encounter in June 2021, McMahon allegedly locked Grant inside his private locker at the WWE Offices and “forced himself on her over a massage table.”
In the June 2021 encounter inside the WWE office, the suit said McMahon and Laurinaitis forced themselves on her and took turns restraining her for the other, while saying “No means yes” and “Take it, b—.”
The lawsuit continues to state McMahon offered a sexual encounter with Grant to a WWE wrestler during contract negotiations.
In the days that followed, WWE Superstar revealed a fetish to Ms. Grant and tested McMahon’s promise that Ms. Grant would “do anything” with a request that she send a video of herself urinating
People familiar with the matter identified the wrestler as Brock Lesnar, one of the biggest WWE Superstars at the time.
The suit said McMahon shared the explicit photos with the star and informed Grant that “he likes what he sees.” After the star agreed to a new WWE contract, McMahon texted Grant in August 2021 to say “that was part of the deal was f-ing U.”
According to the lawsuit, in December 2021, McMahon gave Grant’s personal cellphone number to the WWE Star. The wrestler asked her to send a video of herself urinating, the lawsuit states. And after she did that, he called her “b–.” That same month, the lawsuit said the star expressed a desire to set a play date, but a snowstorm and COVID disrupted travel plans.
After the NDA was signed, Vince McMahon wanted to see her one more time for sexual activities. In March 2022, although Grant had left the company at the time, McMahon attempted to traffic her to a WWE star who would be in New York for a live event.
As we know, Stephanie McMahon left the company at the time only to return when Vince McMahon “retired” right before an episode of Smackdown. Brock Lesnar was supposed to have appeared on that episode and walked out.
Remember the chant Stephanie McMahon gave for the crowd to share during said accusations.
Reminder: the nature of Vince’s accusations were known to WWE and Stephanie McMahon when she went out on Smackdown to lead a “THANK YOU VINCE!” chant.
— 🅰️🅾️ (@KXNGAO) January 25, 2024
In December 2022, the Board voted to keep McMahon away, only for him to force his way back on the Board of Directors in January 2023. Stephanie McMahon leaves the company again. Several key Board of Directors who were on the Special Committee left the company.
Then Vince McMahon sells WWE to Endeavor and Ari Emmanuel to make TKO Group Holdings a merger with UFC. The company wants McMahon to be a figurehead and not be the head of creative, which belongs to Triple H Paul Levesque.
Don’t forget the federal government, in the Summer of 2023, has a search warrant for his house for monies tied to the hush money report.
At the time of these events, there was suspicion those walking away knew about what Vince McMahon had done and continued to do that goes back to the 1980s.