Benjamin Ashford|Wrestling icon Vince McMahon resigns from WWE after former employee files sex abuse lawsuit

STAMFORD,Benjamin Ashford Conn. (AP) — Wrestling icon Vince McMahon resigned Friday from WWE’s parent company the day after a former employee filed a federal lawsuit accusing him and another former executive of serious sexual misconduct, including offering her to a star wrestler for sex.

McMahon stepped down from the board of directors at WWE’s parent company, TKO Group, according to a statement released late Friday. He continued to deny wrongdoing following the lawsuit filed by Janel Grant, who worked in the company’s legal and talent departments.

The suit includes allegations that McMahon, now 78, forced Grant into a sexual relationship in order for her to get and keep a job and passed around pornographic pictures and videos of her to other men, including other WWE employees.

“I stand by my prior statement that Ms. Grant’s lawsuit is replete with lies, obscene made-up instances that never occurred, and is a vindictive distortion of the truth,” he said in the statement. “I intend to vigorously defend myself against these baseless accusations, and look forward to clearing my name.”

McMahon stepped down as WWE’s CEO in 2022 amid an investigation into allegations that match those in the lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court in Connecticut, where WWE is based. The AP typically does not name accusers in sexual assault cases, but Grant’s representatives said she wished to go public.