TRIGGER WARNING: This article contains information about sexual assault and/or violence that may be triggering to some readers.
A woman has accused Migos frontman Takeoff of rape in a civil lawsuit filed yesterday. In a statement, the rapper has denied the allegations of sexual assault and announced he is taking legal action.
Per Rolling Stone, the lawsuit alleges that the rapper, real name Kirshnik Khari Ball, sexually assaulted the woman at a house party in Los Angeles on June 22. The alleged victim — referred to as Jane Doe — claims she went to the party to meet Migos’ DJ Durel, real name Daryl McPherson, who invited her.
At the house party, the suit claims Ball made repeated advances toward the woman that made her “uncomfortable.” She told McPherson that she had “no desire to engage in any sort of intimate relationship with Defendant Takeoff.” McPherson then allegedly “offered to take [the] Plaintiff upstairs to [his] room."
The plaintiff went into the bedroom with Durel and laid on the bed. Shortly after, it is alleged that Takeoff entered the room and began touching her. “Plaintiff clearly and unequivocally refused Defendant Takeoff’s advances and stated to Defendant Takeoff that she did not want to have sex with him,” the lawsuit claims. Despite her protests, according to the court papers, he removed her clothes and raped her.
Following the incident, the plaintiff went to a hospital where it is claimed that medical staff observed “physical evidence of forceful rape” and alerted the Los Angeles Police Department.
In response to the allegations, Takeoff's lawyer, Drew Findling, issued a statement. “We have reviewed the allegations and have similarly done our own due diligence. What has become abundantly clear is that the allegations made against Takeoff are patently and provably false." He continued, "As his counsel, we are well aware and well versed on the importance of civil and criminal prosecution of true sexual assaults. This is not one of those situations."
Updates to follow. If you have been sexually harassed or assaulted, there are resources to help you. Donate to Rape Crisis here (UK) or RAINN here (U.S.).
