Embattled music mogul Russell Simmons is eager to face off with one of his rape accusers in court so he can clear his name once and for all.
The Def Jam Recordings co-founder was recently slapped with a $5 million (£3.5 million) lawsuit from filmmaker Jennifer Jarosik, who claims she was first assaulted by Simmons in 2011 in his New York City home, after he agreed to be interviewed for a documentary she was working on.
Appearing on America's Megyn Kelly Today show on Tuesday (30Jan18), she recalls Simmons allegedly coming on to her "aggressively".
"He started to kiss me and then he raped me," she said. "I tried to force him off, but it happened so quickly and I just froze. I think I just froze."
Despite the reported incident, Jarosik admits she was "weak" and "forgiving", and kept in touch with Simmons, visiting him in Los Angeles in 2016 after he agreed to co-produce her project.
"He was a friend, I felt that I wanted to give him another chance," she explained.
However, after Jarosik rejected his sexual advances on that occasion, Simmons is said to have "pounced on her" and "proceeded to rape her," according to her legal papers.
At the time of the filing last week (ends26Jan18), Simmons issued a statement denying the claims, and he has protested his innocence once again, declaring the truth will come out in court.
"This allegation is absolutely untrue," he writes in a new release. "I look forward to having my day in court - where, unlike the court of public opinion, I will have the ability to make use of fair processes that ensure that justice will be done and that the full truth will be known...
"I did not do what this lawsuit accuses me of doing... The current allegations range from the patently untrue to the frivolous and hurtful. What I will not accept is responsibility for what I have not done."
Jarosik is the latest woman to accuse the rap executive of sexual misconduct. He previously denied eight other allegations and even took a lie detector test before Christmas (17) in a bid to prove at least one of the claims against him was bogus.
