Two Women Say Steven Seagal Sexually Assaulted Them As Teenagers [UPDATED]
LatestTwo women who said they were sexually assaulted by Steven Seagal held a press conference in Los Angeles on Monday, during which they outlined precisely what happened during the alleged incidents.
Faviola Dadis, who in 2002 was a 17-year-old model and aspiring actress, said Seagal assaulted her during a so-called casting session in a Beverly Hills hotel room. Recalling the events alongside her lawyer, Lisa Bloom, Dadis alleged that he reached under her bikini top and grabbed her nipples, then grabbed her vagina after the “audition” began, the AP reports. She left the room immediately thereafter, but the memory of what happened that day has haunted her ever since.
“I have suffered from depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress, have found it difficult to form trusting relationships with men,” said Dadis, now a doctoral candidate in neuroscience who flew to California from Amsterdam to participate in the presser.
Dadis was joined also by Regina Simons, who first went on the record about Seagal in January on Megyn Kelly Today, saying he raped her in his Beverly Hills mansion when she was 18. According to the New York Daily News, Seagal allegedly invited Simons to his house under the guise of throwing a wrap party for his 1994 film, On Deadly Ground. When she arrived, there was no one else to be found:
Simons broke down in tears as she described how Seagal allegedly took her by the hand, led her to an adjacent room and kissed her without warning as he took off her clothes.
“I was in shock. I was completely caught off-guard. Seagal was more than twice my size and more than twice my age. I was not sexually active and had never been naked in front of a man before. I froze,” she said Monday.
“I remember him taking off his robe and the next thing I knew, he was inside of me. I could not move. I felt as if I had left my body and was watching from above. I felt tears come down my face and looked away from his gaze. My eyes focused on a picture in a frame…it was (his wife at the time) Kelly LeBrock,” Simons said.
Seagal faces a litany of accusations from women, including Portia de Rossi, Julianna Margulies and Lisa Guerrero. Bloom said Monday that “all legal options remain open,” including the possibility of criminal charges.
[UPDATE] Jezebel has received the following statement from Steven Seagal’s attorney, Anthony Falangetti:
Mr. Seagal denies all accusations and continues to stand his ground that he has not engaged in any such misconduct. The allegations that have been made against Mr. Seagal are false and have no substantive material support.
The accounts of both women are completely fictitious and totally made up.
The allegations are a disservice to women who are victimized because of real predators in the film industry.