Backstreet Boys singer Nick Carter accused of 'raping teenage fan who had autism and cerebral palsy'
9 December 2022, 06:07
The Backstreet Boys' Nick Carter is being sued for sexual battery over an alleged incident with an autistic teenager with cerebral palsy.
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Shannon Ruth says she was 17 when Mr Carter invited her on to the boy band's tour bus in Washington state in 2001.
He then offered her "VIP juice", a drink she believes had alcohol in it, then took her to the bathroom and told her to perform oral sex on him.
He later sexually assaulted her in a bed as she begged him to stop and told her she would not be believed if she spoke out, and she was left with bruises from the incident, Ms Ruth alleges.
She also claims she was a virgin before meeting the singer and that she he had been infected with HPV from the alleged attack. Mr Carter's lawyer has rejected the claims as false.
"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," she alleged.
"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 said in a press conference.
Ms Ruth, now 39, is seeking more than $30,000 (£24,000) in damages.
Mr Carter's lawyers denied the allegations against his 42-year-old client.
"This claim about an incident that supposedly took place more than 20 years ago is not only legally meritless but also entirely untrue.
"Unfortunately for several years now, Ms Ruth has been manipulated into making false allegations about Nick, and those allegations have changed repeatedly and materially over time.
"No one should be fooled by a press stunt orchestrated by an opportunistic lawyer.
"There is nothing to this claim whatsoever, which we have no doubt the courts will quickly realise."
The singer has not made his own statement on the claim yet.
The allegations come weeks after Aaron Carter, Mr Carter's brother, died aged 34 at his California home.
