Los Angeles: Singer Nick Carter is being accused of raping an underage autistic teenager during a Backstreet Boys tour more than 20 years ago.
The alleged victim Shannon Ruth, who has autism and cerebral palsy, claims that the ‘I Want It That Way’ band member assaulted her on their tour bus in 2001 when she was 17 years old, reports mirror.co.uk.
She held a press conference alongside lawyers, which was livestreamed on Facebook, and appeared distraught while reading allegations.
Now 39 years old, the victim says that despite being autistic and living with cerebral palsy, nothing has affected her more than the “lasting impact” from the alleged attack.
A source close to Nick told TMZ: “This accusation is categorically false, Nick is focusing on his family and mourning the death of his brother.”
The victim claimed in the livestream: “The last 21 years have been filled with pain, confusion, frustration, shame and self-harm that are a direct result of Nick Carter raping me.
“Even though I’m autistic and live with cerebral palsy, I believe that nothing has affected me more or had a more lasting impact on my life than what Nick Carter did and said to me.”
She claims Nick called her a “r*****d b***h” before “grabbing” her and “leaving bruises” on her arm, all of which she says was an alleged attempt to “scare me into silence”.
Detailing why she had waited more than 20 years to bring the allegations to light, she claimed she had feared she would “go to jail” after telling anyone.
The alleged victim says her motivation is to “stop” Nick from “assaulting more teens and women” and to “hold Nick Carter accountable”.
According to legal documents obtained by TMZ, Nick is being sued for sexual battery by the woman.
In the documents, she claimed that Nick had offered her a “red-coloured drink” he allegedly called “VIP juice” – a drink she believes was alcohol and cranberry juice.
She alleges that Nick ordered the then-teenager to perform oral sex on him as she burst into tears, as per the documents also obtained by Page Six.
The alleged victim says Carter reportedly took her to a bed on their tour bus before allegedly continuing to sexually assault her.
She claims as a result of the alleged incident she contracted HPV, a sexually transmitted infection – something she is seeking monetary damages for, as per the documents.
During the alleged victim’s livestream, her attorney spoke to claim that “Nick Carter has a long history of abusing women” before saying that the music industry has a history of “looking away”.
They said they were “determined to bring Carter to justice” and that the alleged victim believes the case is “worth it to protect other women”.
–IANS