Vin Diesel is being sued for allegedly sexually assaulting his former assistant

Actor vin Dieselbest known for his roles in Fast & Furious franchising as well as the Guardians of the Galaxy film, in which he voices the character Groot, was sued for sexual assault against his former assistant. This week, Asta Jonasson filed allegations that while she was working for the actor in Atlanta, where he was filming “Fast Five,” he took her to his suite at the St. Regis Hotel and forced her to lie on his bed.

According to the prosecution, she asked him to stop and approached the door, but he approached her and began groping her breasts and kissing her chest. He tried to pull down her underwear and she screamed and ran towards the bathroom, the complaint alleges. Jonasson claims Diesel pushed himself against the wall and forced her to touch his erect penis, and then began masturbating.

“SM. Jonasson was unable to escape and closed her eyes, fearful of angering Vin Diesel by rejecting him further and attempting to dissociate, wanting the assault to stop,” the lawsuit alleges. Hours later, according to the indictment, Samantha Vincent, Diesel’s sister and president of her company, called Jonasson and fired her.

“It was clear to her that she would be fired because she was no longer useful: Vin Diesel had used her to satisfy his sexual desires and she had resisted his sexual assaults,” the lawsuit alleges. “SM. Jonasson felt like a piece of garbage to be discarded. Ms. Jonasson felt helpless, her self-esteem was demolished and she questioned her abilities and whether a successful career would require her to trade her body for advancement .

Representatives for Diesel did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Jonasson filed the sexual battery lawsuit under California’s Sexual Abuse and Cover Up Accountability Act, a 2022 law that created a one-year window to bring certain actions that would otherwise be outside the statute of limitations. For the case to qualify, the defendant must have attempted to conceal at least one prior sexual assault allegation.

The lawsuit claims that a few days before the Diesel incident, Jonasson had received a proposal from another supervisor at his company, One Race. According to the complaint, the supervisor called her to his hotel room at the St. Regis, took off his shirt, got into bed and said “Come here.”

“Bewildered, Ms. Jonasson immediately left the room and the hotel,” the complaint reads.

In addition to the sexual assault allegation, the lawsuit also states allegations of gender discrimination, wrongful termination, retaliation and negligent supervision.

via: Variety