“Fast & Furious” star Vin Diesel is accused of sexual harassment by a former assistant.
In a lawsuit filed Thursday in Los Angeles and obtained by USA TODAY, Asta Jonasson alleges that the actor sexually assaulted her in the fall of 2010 while filming “Fast Five” in Atlanta.
According to the lawsuit, Jonasson was hired by the actor's production company, One Race, to work for him in various capacities, including organizing and accompanying Diesel to parties and making sure she was nearby in photos when the actor attended events without his long-time girlfriend.
An attorney from Greenberg Gross, the firm representing Jonasson, said in a statement: “We are proud to represent Ms. Jonasson and hold Vin Diesel and those who allowed and covered up his sexual assaults accountable. The law exists to protect those who did it.” Wrongfulness is inflicted no matter how powerful or famous the defendant is. Sexual harassment in the workplace will never stop if powerful men are shielded from responsibility.”
Bryan Freedman, a Los Angeles-based attorney representing Vin Diesel, said in a statement that Diesel “categorically denies this claim in its entirety.”
“This is the first he has heard of this more than 13-year-old lawsuit from an alleged 9-day employee,” Freedman said in the statement. “There is clear evidence that completely refutes these outlandish claims.”
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USA TODAY
According to the allegations, after a late night in September 2010, Jonasson was asked to wait for Diesel, 56, in his suite at the St. Regis Hotel while he entertained hostesses at a club. As the women left, Diesel grabbed Jonasson by her wrists and pulled her onto the bed, the lawsuit says.
She fled and asked Diesel to leave, but he allegedly began groping her breasts, kissing her on the chest and running his hands over her waist and thighs, including her inner thighs.
Jonasson was afraid to “forcibly reject her boss” to ensure her personal safety and the safety of her job, but after Diesel pulled down her underwear, Jonasson screamed and ran down a hallway.
According to the lawsuit, Diesel pushed her against the wall and placed her hand on his genitals. He masturbated while “Ms. Jonasson closed her eyes in fear and tried to distance herself from the sexual assault and not upset him,” the lawsuit says.
Hours later, Diesel's sister and One Race president Samantha Vincent called Jonasson to fire her after less than two weeks on the job, the lawsuit says.
Although Jonasson signed a nondisclosure agreement when she accepted the job, she was able to file the claims because of the Speak Out Act, which prevents enforcement of nondisclosure agreements in sexual assault and assault and harassment cases, and California's AB2777, which temporarily waives statutes of limitations for Allegations of sexual abuse in 2009 or later.
Jonasson also says in the lawsuit that the #MeToo and Time's Up movements have empowered her to “reclaim her agency and justice for the suffering she endured at the hands of Vin Diesel and One Race.”
In addition to starring in the Fast & Furious series, Diesel is also known for his work in Guardians of the Galaxy and Riddick.
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