Vince McMahon accused of sex trafficking in new lawsuit

A new lawsuit has been filed accusing Vince McMahon of abusing and sexually exploiting a former WWE employee, alleging years of alleged sexual misconduct that included the involvement of John Laurinaitis and Brock Lesnar.

The suit was filed against WWE, McMahon, and Laurinaitis in the District of Connecticut on Thursday. The plaintiff — former WWE employee Janel Grant — alleges she “was the victim of physical and emotional abuse, sexual assault and trafficking at WWE.”

Grant is the former WWE employee whose “secret” $3 million settlement with McMahon led to him being investigated by the WWE board of directors in 2022. However, she claimed she was only paid $1 million and is seeking to both void the agreement and get unspecified financial damages.

The Wall Street Journal reported on Grant’s lawsuit on Thursday. 

The lawsuit alleges Grant felt pressured into a sexual relationship with McMahon due to threats he would use his legal resources against her if she did not. McMahon’s demands grew increasingly depraved through her employment with the company from 2019 to 2021.

She was also expected to engage in sexual encounters with Laurinaitis during her employment, according to the lawsuit.

It is also alleged that McMahon promised a sexual encounter with Grant to a WWE wrestler, reported by the WSJ to be Lesnar, during contract negotiations in the summer of 2021.

From the report:

In July 2021, the suit said, McMahon instructed Grant to create personalized sexual content for a WWE superstar that he was trying to re-sign. The suit didn’t name the professional wrestler, but described him as both a UFC fighter and WWE talent. People familiar with the matter identified the wrestler as Brock Lesnar, one of WWE’s biggest names.

Lesnar didn’t immediately respond Thursday to requests for comment.
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 part of the deal was f—ing U.”

That December, McMahon gave Grant’s personal cellphone number to the WWE star, the lawsuit said. The wrestler asked her to send a video of herself urinating, the suit said, and after she did, he called her a “b—.” That same month, the suit said, the star expressed a desire to “set a play date,” but a snowstorm disrupted his travel plans.

The 67-page filing includes several graphic accusations and descriptions.

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 states Grant and McMahon met in 2019 while McMahon was living in a penthouse in Grant’s apartment building. At the time, Grant says she was struggling financially due to years of caregiving for her elderly parents. 

“McMahon befriended Ms. Grant, giving her hopes of a new life with promises of a yet-to-be-determined role at WWE,” the lawsuit reads.

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. 

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. 

McMahon is alleged to have warned Grant to keep their “closeness” a secret, stating he had “world-class legal resources on speed dial to deal with people who became a problem.”

Grant says she felt trapped between being ruined by McMahon’s legal resources or succumbing to the pressure of a physical relationship. 

Grant was given the role of “administrator-coordinator” on June 17, 2019. She was later transferred to Talent Relations on March 9, 2021. 

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” (Lesnar) while another was a WWE referee. 

The lawsuit stated that McMahon’s sexual demands became increasingly depraved. Grant tried to stop their physical encounters but McMahon refused. 

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 that McMahon sent Grant to a “celebrity doctor” for hour-long appointments that included “deep dives into her personal and work life.” 

Her mental and physical health deteriorated so badly that McMahon sent her in November to a celebrity doctor for sessions at an alternative clinic where she never received any receipts or bills. McMahon also paid $20,000 to a surgeon on her behalf, the suit said.

Grant was briefly sent to work at the XFL in March 2020 and applied to work with the organization full-time. However, her request was denied. 

In May 2020, McMahon is alleged to have defecated on Grant during a sexual encounter that also included McMahon’s physical therapist. Shortly after, McMahon began telling Grant he loved her. 

In November 2020, McMahon is 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. 

McMahon also instructed Grant to “obey” Laurinatis if he requested bringing in more men for their encounters. 

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—.”

In January 2022, McMahon informed her that his wife, Linda, had discovered their relationship and Grant would need to leave the company as a result. However, he first wanted her to sign an NDA. Grant signed the NDA in exchange for payments which McMahon later stopped making according to the lawsuit.

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.