Michael Jackson’s estate makes shocking accusation against man who made child sex abuse claim
Michael Jackson’s estate says one of his accusers is threatening to reveal new allegations of child abuse against the late star if he doesn’t receive $213 million in compensation.
The estate’s administrators have filed a lawsuit with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles, alleging that prosecutors are threatening to bring new charges against the King of Pop ahead of his biopic film.
The man and four others had told Jackson’s estate in 2019 that they might pursue allegations that the superstar had behaved inappropriately toward some of them when they were children, the Financial Times.
A year later, the estate reached a nearly $20 million settlement with prosecutors, who instead agreed to defend the singer’s reputation. But Jackson’s estate now claims the man fabricated the allegations against the singer and is seeking an additional $213 million in a new settlement.
In their petition, the trustees of Jackson’s estate ask that the plaintiff honor the 2020 settlement and not disclose the claims he has kept secret.
Michael Jackson’s estate has claimed that one of his accusers is threatening to reveal new allegations of child abuse against the late star if he does not receive $213 million
When Jackson died in 2009, he was $500 million in debt, but his debt has since grown to more than $3 billion.
The beneficiaries are Jackson’s three adult children, his mother and several charities.
Jackson’s will left his faithful assistant John Branca as one of the trustees of his assets and estate.
Branca told The Financial Times that the estate settled with the five accusers in 2020 as a “business decision” after the HBO documentary about Jackson’s accusers again tarnished the singer’s legacy.
The plaintiffs involved in the 2020 settlement did not participate in Leaving Neverland.
Michael Jackson’s children (L-R) Prince, Paris and Blanket Jackson. They are beneficiaries of the star’s estate, along with their grandmother and various charities
Jackson’s will left his assistant John Branca as one of the trustees of his assets and estate
“We survived Leaving Neverland, but I’m not sure we would have survived with those additional allegations,” he said.
Branca added that his lawyers told him, “You have no choice. If these people come forward and make these allegations, then Michael is finished, his legacy is over, the case is over.”
Accusers of Jackson’s Leaving Neverland are calling the upcoming film, titled Michael, “propaganda” and an attempt to debunk allegations of child abuse against the star.
John Carpenter, who represents Jackson’s accusers Wade Robson and James Safechuck, previously told DailyMail.com that the Jackson family wanted to “demonise” the victims to protect the singer’s image rather than face the truth.
Robson and Safechuck are suing two companies that Jackson owned and controlled before he died in 2009 at age 50.
The case could come before or even coincide with the release of the new Jackson biopic, titled “Michael,” in April next year.
Wade Robson (left) and James Safechuck (right) both appeared in the harrowing 2019 HBO documentary Leaving Neverland — and detailed their abuse allegations against Jackson
The film, directed by Antoine Fuqua and backed by Jackson’s estate, stars Jackson’s cousin, Jaafar Jackson, as the King of Pop.
But it has already proven controversial, as draft versions of the script suggest it ignores Jackson’s alleged abuse of underage boys.
Robson, a choreographer and director now 46, alleges that Jackson began sexually abusing him in 1990, when he was seven years old and visiting Neverland, the singer’s former ranch just outside Los Angeles.
Safechuck, a writer and director now in his 40s, claims he was only 10 when Jackson began abusing him. They first met in Paris in 1988.