A complaint filed Thursday by Kerry Moynihan’s parents, a 32-year-old financial manager at Activision Blizzard, when she was found dead during the company’s retirement in 2017, said sexual harassment was a “significant factor” leading to it. death.
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Allegations in DFEH’s complaint include that during the holiday party before her death, male colleagues handed over a photo of her vagina and referred to a “male supervisor” who claimed to have brought sex toys with him during the business trip. .
Activision Blizzard last year called DFEH’s allegations “distorted and in many cases false” and criticized the State Department for including a mention of suicide: attitude to this case and without regard to her grieving family. “
The family’s wrongful death case, which shows it was filed in the Los Angeles Supreme Court by Paul and Janet Moynihan, alleges that their daughter’s boss, Greg Restituito, initially lied to investigators at the Anaheim Police Department who were investigating the death. her in a hotel room. at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa, disguising that he had sex with Moynihan. Restituito did not respond immediately to a message with a request for comment.
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According to the complaint, Restituito also made obvious efforts to hide evidence of his relationship with Moynihan after her death. An alleged police report cited in the complaint also notes that the Restituito made “seemingly unusual inquiries with other officers who were present with [Kerri] the night before she died. “
According to a LinkedIn account, Restituito worked as Senior Chief Financial Officer for Activision Blizzard until May 2017, the month after Moynihan’s death. Restituito did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the case.
Parents’ attorneys Jeffrey Isaacs and Adam Kargman provided a copy of the complaint, but had no further comment.
According to the lawsuit, Activision Blizzard refused to hand over the company’s Moynihan laptop to police, saying its mobile phone had been “deleted” and also refusing to give them access to Restituito’s laptop or mobile phone.
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The Anaheim Police Department declined to reveal to The Post reports of Moynihan’s death. An autopsy report released by the Orange County Sheriff’s Corner shows that Moynihan’s death was defined as suicide.
A spokesman for Activision Blizzard declined to respond directly to the allegations in the lawsuit, instead saying in a statement that the company was “deeply saddened by the tragic death of Ms Moynihan, who was a valuable member of the company. We will review the complaint through the trial as the case may be, and out of respect for the family, we have no further comments. “
The Moynihan family lawsuit is contributing to the growing sexual harassment and discrimination scandal that has engulfed Activision Blizzard since last year. It is one of the largest gaming companies in the world, with nearly 10,000 employees producing hit franchises such as Call of Duty and World of Warcraft, but its agreed sale to Microsoft stunned the industry and a series of accusations against the company followed. .
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Following the DFEH lawsuit, which alleges the company has a “brotherhood boy culture,” the Wall Street Journal reported in November that CEO Bobby Kotick had not notified his board of directors of sexual harassment incidents. Kotik, a hostile tycoon with a reputation for big profits, leaving a trail of injured employees, is expected to resign when the sale of Microsoft ends next year.
Activision Blizzard is also currently under investigation by the US Securities and Exchange Commission for handling allegations of sexual harassment and discrimination based on gender, and the company was sued last year for allegedly intimidating workers and breaking up unions.
According to the case of her parents, Moynihan, a Massachusetts-born and licensed chartered accountant, has worked for Activision Blizzard since 2011. During the corporate retreat in the early morning of April 27, 2017, Moynihan said, she spoke with Restituito in lobby of the Grand Californian. According to the lawsuit, the Restituito then sent her a message: “Please do not do this. Not tonight. Think about it and make your decision when your mind is clear. ”
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Moynihan died in his hotel room about half an hour later, the case said.
The action concerns a subsequent ‘cover-up’ by Restituito and Activision. The complaint alleges that the Retituito key hotel card was found in Moynihan’s room, but when he was interviewed by detectives, he “hid the fact that he had sex” with her and also lied about why he had a key to her apartment.
The lawsuit alleges that Moynihan’s parents were unaware of the alleged sexual harassment of their deceased daughter until California’s DFEH filed a lawsuit last summer, and that Activision supervisors, including Restituito, “know or should have known” she was sexually harassed. , but “failed and refused to take immediate corrective action.”
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“Kerry’s harassment was a significant factor in Kerry’s harm … tragically culminating in Kerry’s death at the age of 32,” the lawsuit said.
The trial also criticized Anaheim police for a “superficial and incomplete investigation” – including alleging that she did not clean fingerprints or question Retituito about the text message before her death – “which left many questions unanswered”.
“We are supporting our investigation,” said Anaheim police spokesman Sergeant Shane Caringer.