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Magician David Copperfield has been accused of sexual misconduct by 16 totally different girls, with greater than half alleging they had been underage once they interacted with the entertainer.
The claims had been made as a part of a years-long investigation by the Guardian newspaper’s U.S. bureau, which reported allegations relationship from the late Eighties to 2014.
The accusations in opposition to Copperfield, 67, vary from alleged cases of drugging, sexual assault and groping.
Most of the girls declare Copperfield stated he would assist them set up a modelling or leisure profession. Greater than half of the accusers stated they met Copperfield at one in all his exhibits.
Copperfield has denied all of the allegations in opposition to him. Attorneys for the illusionist advised the Guardian that Copperfield “by no means acted inappropriately with anybody, not to mention anybody underage.” His attorneys keep the magician is somebody who shows “kindness, shyness and remedy of women and men with respect.”
The attorneys stated it was “not solely utterly false but in addition totally implausible” that Copperfield ever touched a girl inappropriately.
As for allegations of drugging girls, Copperfield’s attorneys stated medication are “not part of his world.”
Copperfield has by no means been charged with a criminal offense, his attorneys famous.
One girl included within the Guardian’s investigation, Brittney Lewis, made her accusations in opposition to Copperfield public in 2018. She stated he drugged her in 1988, when she was 17 years outdated, then sexually assaulted her.
The magician denied Lewis’ allegations in 2018 when she mentioned them publicly.
Now, two extra unnamed girls advised the Guardian they had been additionally drugged and sexually assaulted by Copperfield. The ladies, who’re buddies, stated they met Copperfield for drinks after one in all his exhibits in 1993. They advised the newspaper they had been unable to consent to intercourse with him and “blacked out” in his resort room.
4 different girls stated Copperfield groped them or that they had been made to the touch him in a sexual method throughout his stage performances. Three of the 4 girls had been youngsters on the time of the alleged incidents. One girl stated she was 15 years outdated when Copperfield allegedly touched her breasts on stage with out consent, all whereas her household watched from the viewers.
A distinct, nameless girl advised the Guardian she was additionally 15 when she met Copperfield at a present in 1991. The pair saved involved for years, however the girl now says she was “groomed” by the illusionist, who as soon as despatched her a card when she was 16 that learn, “In 2 years I can be again.” The girl stated she and Copperfield had consensual intercourse when she was 18, and that it was her first time.
Copperfield’s attorneys denied he groomed the accuser and stated she and Copperfield had a consensual relationship for 4 years.
One groping allegation in opposition to Copperfield has Canadian roots, stemming from a present in Hamilton, Ont. in 1996. The accuser stated she was 17 when Copperfield invited her on stage. He allegedly touched her inappropriately “between the anus and the vagina” in entrance of the gang. She filed a police criticism in 2018.
One other girl, 38-year-old Fallon Thornton, reported Copperfield to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Division after he allegedly squeezed her breast when she got here on stage throughout a 2014 efficiency at MGM Grand casino-hotel. The Guardian obtained police data for the alleged incident, which famous the case was closed as a consequence of “inadequate proof.”
These 16 girls will not be the primary to accuse Copperfield of sexual misconduct — cases which his attorneys known as “quite a few false claims” already in opposition to him.
The Guardian stated their in depth reporting drew on interviews with greater than 100 individuals, in addition to court docket and police data.
In a press release to International Information, a consultant for Copperfield maintained his innocence.
“Everybody that is aware of David Copperfield will let you know that these latest allegations from one newspaper are the precise reverse of who David is. The truth is, David has a file of risking his profession to assist defend girls from highly effective predators,” the assertion reads. “Most of those historic accusations have been made earlier than, and all of them are as false now as they had been then. David requested the ‘proof’ upon which these false allegations declare to rely and this has not been supplied. In contrast, each time US legislation enforcement has regarded into such issues, they’ve been investigated completely and it has been discovered that there’s merely no case to reply.”
The assertion continues: “The Guardian’s characterization is just not who David is, and he continues to assist anybody who has skilled any type of abuse or discrimination. The motion should succeed, however false accusations should cease for it to flourish. David can be contemplating the place together with his authorized group and can take such steps as could also be applicable over these false and scurrilous allegations.”
In January, Copperfield’s title was revealed in paperwork associated to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, amongst a number of different high-profile people. One in all Epstein’s victims named Copperfield in a 2016 deposition associated to a defamation lawsuit in opposition to Ghislaine Maxwell and stated she met the magician when he carried out methods at a dinner.
The presence of Copperfield’s title in Epstein-related paperwork doesn’t straight imply he has dedicated a criminal offense. His attorneys stated Copperfield had “no information or perception that something improper was happening” with Epstein.
“Like the remainder of the world, he discovered about it from the press,” his attorneys stated of Epstein’s crimes, including that Copperfield didn’t frequently socialize with Epstein.
In the event you or somebody you already know is experiencing abuse or is concerned in an abusive state of affairs, please go to the Canadian Useful resource Centre for Victims of Crime for assist. They’re additionally reachable toll-free at 1-877-232-2610.
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