Patriots’ Antonio Brown accused of raping former trainer in 2018, lawsuit claims
SOUTH FLORIDA - NFL star Antonio Brown is accused of sexually assaulting and raping a former trainer, according to a lawsuit filed in South Florida.
The lawsuit, filed Tuesday, claims that Brown “exploited, sexually assaulted and raped his former trainer Britney Taylor” in three separate incidents. The first two happened in 2017 and the third in 2018, according to the lawsuit.
Taylor is a gymnast who Brown met while they attended Central Michigan University together. In June 2017, he hired Taylor as a physical trainer.
The same month Brown hired Taylor, the documents allege that he exposed himself to her and then kissed her without her consent.
Later that month, Brown allegedly masturbated behind Taylor and ejaculated on her back. The documents state she didn’t know what happened until she felt a wet spot on her back. She later received “profane and angry text messages” from Brown bragging about it.
On May 20, 2018, the lawsuit alleges Brown cornered Taylor, “forced her down on a bed, pushed her face into a mattress and forcibly raped her.”
Taylor tried to resist but was overpowered by Brown, according to the documents. The lawsuit states that she cried and repeatedly screamed “no” and “stop” during the rape.
The 28-year-old is seeking compensatory and punitive damages.
Darren Heitner, a lawyer who appears to represent Brown, tweeted a statement from the football star.
“Brown denies each and every allegation in the lawsuit. He will pursue all legal remedies to not only clear his name, but to also protect other professional athletes against false accusations,” the statement read, in part.
That statement further states that Brown was approached by Taylor in 2017, “shortly after Mr. Brown signed a contract making him the highest paid wide receiver in the NFL.”
It alleges that Taylor asked Brown to invest $1.6 million in her “business project.”
“Mr. Brown was not informed by his accuser that she had just been levied with a $30,000 IRS tax lien or that $300,000 of the $1.6 million so called ‘investment’ was to be used to purchase property already owned by the accuser and her mother,” the statement claims.
Brown’s lawyer states that when he refused to give Taylor the money, she “supposedly cut off communications with Mr. Brown,” but that she later offered training services to him in 2018.
The statement claims that Taylor continued contact with Brown “throughout 2018,” even asking him for tickets to a Pittsburgh Steelers game at the end of the year.
“Mr. Brown’s accuser has continually posted photographs of Mr. Brown on her social media in an effort to financially benefit from his celebrity,” the statement said.
Brown, 31, recently became a member of the New England Patriots after being released from the Oakland Raiders. The release came after several conflicts erupted between Brown and the team’s management.