Chinese American author Sil Lai Abrams accused music mogul Russell Simmons of rape and Extra host A.J. Calloway of sexual assault in a recent report by The Hollywood Reporter.
“I needed to tell my story, to say his name out loud, to let people know what he had done to me,” Abrams, 47, told THR in an article published Thursday (July 5).
The Hawaii-born Abrams, whose mother is a Chinese immigrant, is an anti-domestic violence advocate, author and former model. She said that Simmons raped her in 1994 and she was sexually assaulted by Extra host A.J. Calloway 12 years later in 2006.
She first wrote about the sexual assaults in 2007 in her book No More Drama, but didn’t reveal who her assailants were. In the book, she describes being raped in 1994 by “Ronald,” a man “well known for only dating models and for his hard-partying lifestyle funded by his very successful record label.” A “well-spoken B-list celebrity Ray,” she claims, assaulted her in 2006.
In response to the Hollywood Reporter story, Simmons’ lawyer, Patricia Glaser, said in a statement on Simmons’ behalf:
Russell Simmons provided overwhelming material to THR [The Hollywood Reporter) (some on the record and some off the record) to support his unequivocal denial of any wrongdoing and THR chose to ignore it. It is extremely disappointing that a 24-year-old story, which did not get past very credible news outlets, was published in light of the massive contrary evidence.
Attorney Lisa E. Davis sent this statement from Calloway:
I was disappointed to read the false allegations about me in The Hollywood Reporter. As I have maintained from the beginning, these allegations are not true. When I was first notified about these allegations by law enforcement more than a decade ago, I fully cooperated from the beginning and the case was dismissed.
THR chose to publish these meritless allegations without a thorough investigation of the facts. I intend to vigorously defend my reputation against these false accusations and will not let this cause further harm to my family.
A total of 17 women have now accused music producer and entrepreneur Russell Simmons of sexual misconduct, all of which he has denied.
In a statement from his representative, Simmons denied the allegations to PEOPLE magazine:
“I vehemently deny all the allegations made against me. They have shocked me to my core as I have never been abusive or violent in any way in my relations with women. I have submitted myself to multiple lie detector tests. I denied forced sex and sexual harassment allegations brought against me in each test; I also answered no to the question, “Have you ever physically forced any woman to have sexual intercourse?” I passed all of the lie detector tests.”
On her website, Abrams have released excerpts from her book which she says support her allegations.
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