Moby cancels book tour after furor over
Natalie Portman claims
Thomson Reuters
Musician Moby has cancelled his book tour after mischaracterizing a past relationship with actor Natalie Portman in his new memoir. (Getty Images)
American musician Moby on Wednesday cancelled his book tour after mischaracterizing a past relationship with actress Natalie Portman in his new book.
A message on his website said that Moby was cancelling "all upcoming public appearances for the foreseeable future." It was posted three days before he was due to start the UK leg of a tour to promote his memoir Then It Fell Apart.
It's so appropriately named!
American musician Moby cancelled 'all upcoming public appearances for the foreseeable future' in a post on his website. (Moby.com)
The electronic dance musician found himself mired in controversy last week after claiming in the book that Portman flirted with him and asked him for a date in 2001, when she was a rising star.
The Oscar-winning Black Swan actress told Harper's Bazaar last week that she was surprised to hear him describe it as dating. She called his behaviour at the time inappropriate and added, "my recollection is a much older man being creepy with me when I just had graduated high school.
"He said I was 20; I definitely wasn't. I was a teenager. I had just turned 18. That he used this story to sell his book was very disturbing to me," added Portman, now 37.
Moby apologized to Portman, saying in an Instagram post earlier this week; "I accept that given the dynamic of our almost 14 year age difference I absolutely should've acted more responsibly and respectfully when Natalie and I first met almost 20 years ago."
"I'm going to go away for awhile," the singer, 53, added in a posting on Tuesday.
moby
Verified
I’m going to go away for awhile.
But before I do I want to apologize again, and to say clearly that all of this has been my own fault.
I am the one who released the book without showing it to the people I wrote about. I’m the one who posted defensively and arrogantly. I’m the one who behaved inconsiderately and disrespectfully, both in 2019 and in 1999.
There is obviously no one else to blame but me.
Thank you, and I’m sorry.
Moby
"But before I do I want to apologize again, and to say clearly that all of this has been my own fault."
Representatives for Portman, who is a supporter of the Time's Up movement against sexual harassment, declined further comment on Wednesday.
R. Kelly charged with 11 new counts of
sexual assault and abuse
The singer was previously charged in February with 10 counts of felony aggravated sexual abuse, allegations which he has denied.
By Minyvonne Burke
Singer R. Kelly was charged Thursday with 11 new counts of sexual assault and sex abuse, court documents show.
Four of the charges are aggravated criminal sexual assault, two are criminal sexual assault by force, three are aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a victim between 13 and 16 years old and two are aggravated criminal sexual abuse.
The aggravated criminal sexual assault charges are Class X felonies, which according to NBC Chicago is the most serious felony in Illinois and carries a mandatory minimum prison sentence of six to 30 years.
"These 'new' charges are not really new — they are the same conduct, just charged differently. Same alleged victim, same time frame, same facts," the singer's attorney, Steven Greenberg, said. "And we still expect the same results."
"With the latest charges brought against Robert Kelly, he still maintains his innocence and denies all accusations brought against him," said Darrell Johnson, a representative for Kelly, adding the singer still maintains he is innocent. "He looks forward to a swift and speedy trial."
Kelly, 52, whose real name is Robert Sylvester Kelly, was charged in February with 10 counts of felony aggravated sexual abuse. He has denied all the accusations against him.
"I didn't do this stuff," he told CBS News' Gayle King in an emotional interview in March. "This is not me. I'm fighting for my f---ing life."
The singer pleaded not guilty to the charges in February after posting bond and being released from the Cook County Jail.
According to an unsealed indictment released at the time he was first charged, four people alleged that they were victimized by Kelly. They were only identified in court documents by their initials.
Allegations of sexual misconduct against Kelly gained renewed interest following the January release of the six-part Lifetime docuseries "Surviving R. Kelly," which detailed a number of women's claims that they were sexually, physically nnd mentally abused by him. He denied all those accusations.
Fallout from the series was swift with Sony Music announcing that it was parting ways with the Grammy-winning singer.
Prosecutors said the alleged sex acts in the original charges occurred between May 1998 and January 2010. Authorities said three of the victims were under the age of 17.
Kelly, who was previously charged with child pornography and was eventually cleared by a jury in 2008 on all counts, told King that the person the women described in the Lifetime series was "Lucifer."
"I'm not Lucifer. I'm a man. I make mistakes, but I'm not a devil, and by no means am I a monster," he said.
Brazilian football star Neymar accused of rape in Paris – reports
REUTERS / Pilar Olivares
Brazil and Paris Saint-Germain megastar Neymar has been accused of raping a woman in the French capital, according to reports in the striker’s homeland.
Brazilian outlet UOL claims that a document was filed on Friday in Santo Amaro, a district of Sao Paulo, which alleges that an unnamed woman was sexually assaulted by the star in Paris on May 15.
Neymar, 27, plays his club football for PSG in the French capital, having moved there in a world record transfer two seasons ago.
The alleged incident is said to have taken place in a Paris hotel, with the player supposedly meeting the accuser through Instagram, UOL reports.
The outlet claims to have seen the report, which alleges that the football star arrived drunk at the Sofitel Paris Arc Du Triomphe before forcing himself on her.
The testimony reportedly states that the woman then returned to Brazil on May 17, and has now decided to take action.
Officials in Santo Amaro have confirmed that a case was registered, but have not provided names or details, UOL reports. "More information will be passed through the press office," one official reportedly said after being contacted for comment.
Representatives for Neymar have declined to comment, saying that he was not yet aware of the allegations and would comment on learning more details, according to Brazilian outlet Globo.
His father is already said to have rejected the claims and has accused the alleged victim of forging evidence.
Neymar is currently training with the Brazil squad ahead of this summer’s Copa America tournament, which will be hosted on home soil.
'I was a rape victim': Brazilian model adamant
over Neymar sex assault accusations
Najila Trindade Mendes de Souza, who accused footballer Neymar of rape © AFP / HO / SBT |
Brazil’s Neymar REUTERS/Ueslei Marcelino
The 26-year-old said she was left “traumatized” after the incident in which she alleges the Brazilian footballer became violent and aggressive before forcing her into sexual intercourse.
Appearing on Brazilian TV this week, Mendes de Souza detailed the alleged assault committed by the world’s highest paid player as well as confirming she had agreed to fly to Paris to spend time with the striker. The model denied, however, that any sex was consensual and insisted she had been the victim of a rape.
“I was a rape victim,” Mendes de Souza said. “I had the desire of being with Neymar and when I got there everything was good, everything was fine, the messages, I was going to succeed, do you understand? But when I got there he was aggressive, totally different from the guy I met through the texts."
She confirmed that she contacted Neymar on Instagram, in pursuit of beginning a relationship with the player. After exchanging messages of a sexual nature, Neymar invited Mendes de Souza to Paris, promising to pay all travel expenses.
Mendes de Souza also alleged she refused to participate in any sex without a condom, but that the player ignored her pleas. “From the moment that he held me, violently hitting me, he was forcing me to stay there, in that place,” she added.
Neymar has repeatedly denied all allegations, insisting that he is the victim of a blackmail attempt. In an attempt to prove his innocence, he shared images of Mendes de Souza to confirm that their relationship was consensual.
However, this triggered an investigation by Rio de Janeiro's cybercrime division, as images were posted without her permission.
On Thursday, video footage emerged on social media reportedly showing Neymar being attacked by Mendes de Souza a day after the alleged sexual assault.
What it doesn't show is what might have provoked the violent reaction by Nabila. I'm curious, also, as to why Neymar, as it appears, set up the video camera.
video 1:06
Prosecutors drop rape probe of actor Gérard Depardieu
Paris prosecutors have dropped an investigation into a woman's sexual assault allegations against actor Gérard Depardieu.
The Paris prosecutor's office says that an investigation into a woman's rape and sexual assault accusations against actor Gérard Depardieu has been dropped because of lack of evidence.
A preliminary investigation was opened last August after a young woman filed a complaint near the southern city of Aix-en-Provence for rape and sexual aggression.
At the time, Depardieu's lawyer, Hervé Temime, said the actor "absolutely denies any rape, any sexual assault, any crime" and dismissed the complaint as "groundless."
The prosecutor's office said on Tuesday that the case was thrown out after "numerous investigations" failed to show infractions as described.
French media have reported that the woman alleged Depardieu assaulted her on August 7 and August 13 at his Parisian home.
Depardieu has appeared in 200 films over six decades and holds a rare position as a French actor who is known in Hollywood. He won a Golden Globe for his performance in Green Card, a 1990 English-language romantic comedy co-starring Andie MacDowell.
Mega-church leader Joaquin Garcia arrested
for major sex trafficking crimes
La Luz del Mundo Church in Guadalajara
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced on Tuesday that mega-church leader Joaquin Garcia and others associated with him face charges of human trafficking, production of child pornography, forcible rape of a minor, among other felonies.
Becerra says Garcia committed the crimes between 2015 and 2018 while leading La Luz Del Mundo, an international religious organization headquartered in Mexico with over one million followers reported worldwide.
In the criminal complaint, it is alleged that García and his "co-defendants" allegedly coerced victims into performing sexual acts by telling them that if they went against any of his desires or wishes as "the Apostle," that they were going against God.
A copy of the criminal complaint is available on the California Attorney General's website.
The other individuals named in the complaint are Alondra Ocampo, Azalea Rangel Melendez, and Susana Medina Oaxaca, all of whom are affiliated with La Luz Del Mundo. In addition to García, Alondra Ocampo and Susana Medina Oaxaca were also arrested.
An arrest warrant has also been issued for Azalea Rangel Melendez, who is currently at large.
Anyone who believed they may have been a victim of sexual abuse or have information about incidents of sexual misconduct related to anyone who may be involved in this case is asked to call 323-765-2100 or you can file a complaint online at https://oag.ca.gov/LLDM.
Garcia's bail was set at $50 million.
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