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Former CAA executive accused of trafficking by woman who says she was kept as a ‘sex slave’

BBG News

This week, an anonymous woman filed a lawsuit against well-known British soccer agent, Jonathan Barnett, alleging that he sexually assaulted her and held her in a state of sexual servitude.

In a court case submitted on Wednesday at the U.S. District Court in Los Angeles, it was claimed by the woman that Barnett forced her into being his sexual servant and exploited his business assets for controlling her actions.

In the legal case, a woman known as “Jane Doe” additionally filed lawsuits against Creative Artists Agency in Hollywood and CAA Stellar, a sports agency, both of which had Barnett serving as their executive chairman.

Barnett denied the allegations.

In response to today’s accusations, Barnett declared that they lack any factual foundation and are false. We intend to robustly contest this lawsuit using the due course of law. I eagerly anticipate a complete clearance of my name and acquittal.

In 2024, the CAA became aware of the woman’s accusations after receiving an inquiry from the media and a request for settlement from her lawyer.

In a statement, CAA clarified that the accusations made against them are not applicable as Ms. Doe has no professional ties with CAA, ICM, or Stellar. She has never been an employee, consultant, or contractor of these entities, and has had no business connections to any of them. CAA acknowledges and addresses such allegations with utmost seriousness.

Barnett exited Stellar in February 2024.

The female plaintiff, currently living in Australia, claims that Barnett first offered her a job at CAA Stellar and covered the costs of relocating her children from Australia to the UK as part of the job offer. However, after she relocated to the UK, she asserted that she was subjected to trafficking, threats, torture, and bondage in various locations worldwide, including Los Angeles, between 2017 and 2023, according to the lawsuit.

Hollywood Inc.

Present and past employees at ICM Partners claim they allowed behavior that included harassment and misconduct towards women and individuals of color without taking appropriate action.

In the mid-1990s, a friend introduced the woman to Barnett, and they lost touch until 2017 when Barnett reached out to her on LinkedIn. According to the court documents, their reunion occurred over lunch in London in 2017. Barnett presented her with an attractive employment offer that included covering moving costs, sponsoring visas for her and her children, paying for their school tuition, providing housing, a starting salary of £4,000, and a summer bonus, as stated in the lawsuit.

Following her relocation to London, Barnett requested a meeting with the woman in a hotel room. There, he reportedly claimed ownership of her and demanded she refer to him as “my Master,” the lawsuit claims. He then instructed her to undress and later assaulted her, striking her down and raping her, as stated in the lawsuit.

Understanding that she had no means to defend herself against a potentially lethal attacker, Ms. Doe chose to yield to Barnett as a way to prevent serious injury or death,” according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit claims that Barnett called a woman derogatory names such as “slave,” “dog,” and “whore.” He also requested that she produce humiliating videos, including ones showing her drinking urine, cleaning the toilet with her mouth, consuming feces, and self-flagellation. The woman alleged that Barnett physically abused her, striking, kicking, stepping on her fingers, and whipping her. She was forced to send him images of her injuries to his company’s phone, according to the lawsuit.

To this day, Ms. Doe continues to experience issues such as urinary tract infections, skin rashes, mouth sores, and irregular vaginal bleeding – all of which are believed to be the lasting effects from the cruel and inhumane treatment inflicted by Barnett, according to the court document.

Hollywood Inc.

Century City-based Creative Artist Agency buys ICM Partners for an undisclosed price.

Barnett is a prominent figure in the field of sports representation. In 2019, he topped Forbes’ list of the most powerful sports agents, and in 2020, the magazine recognized him as the world’s premier soccer agent. He currently manages over $1.42 billion worth of active contracts and transfer fees in soccer deals.

As a passionate movie buff, I’ve got quite the backstage pass in the world of sports. In the early ’90s, before stepping into the limelight, I was the man behind the scenes, brokering deals for some heavy hitters – boxers among them, like the legendary Lennox Lewis, who ruled the ring as a heavyweight champion.

But my journey didn’t stop there. In 1992, I teamed up with my partner David Manasseh to launch Stellar Sports. This wasn’t just any ordinary sports management company; it was a powerhouse that went beyond boxing and made its mark in other arenas too. We expanded our clientele to include cricket players, and later, we signed some big names from the soccer field, such as Glen Johnson and Peter Crouch, who added star power to our roster.

Over time, Stellar grew into the globe’s leading soccer representation company, boasting a clientele of over 800 athletes before being acquired by ICM Partners in 2020. Now under the ownership of CAA, this firm played a significant role in making CAA the highest-valued sports agency on Forbes’ 2022 list of top agencies.

Barnett had served as CAA Stellar’s executive chairman until last year.

The lawsuit claimed that after CAA, along with other defendants, bought ICM in June 2022, they chose to disregard emails and communications on corporate devices and monitored accounts, within which he repeatedly called her a “slave” and instructed her to resume work.

According to the lawsuit, BSG Valentine, the accounting firm of CAA Stellar, had provided a guarantee on the apartment leases where a woman resided, whom Barnett (a Stellar employee) assisted in making payments. The lawsuit claims that during business hours, Stellar drivers would transport Barnett to the woman’s residence and wait while he allegedly physically assaulted and raped her.

Hollywood Inc.

ICM Partners has taken over the London-based Stellar Group, a company that manages over 800 athletes. This acquisition makes ICM one of the key figures in athlete representation, going head-to-head with industry giants such as WME and CAA.

2020 saw Stellar in discussions for a potential sale to ICM Partners. According to the court case, three wire transfers totaling approximately 20,400 British pounds were made by Stellar to a woman in January, July, and September of that year.

Following the acquisition of Stellar, a contemporary anti-slavery declaration was published on their website by the company, stating: “ICM Stellar Sports is dedicated to preventing modern slavery and human trafficking from occurring in any part of our operations.” The lawsuit alleges this to be the case.

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2025-07-04 03:31

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