Vin Diesel has been accused of sexual battery by his former assistant.
According to court documents obtained by Us Weekly, Diesel’s former assistant claimed that the actor assaulted her in 2010 while he was filming The Fast and the Furious sequel Fast Five. Us has reached out to Diesel, 56, for comment. (Vanity Fair was the first to report the lawsuit.)
Asta Jonasson claimed in her lawsuit that she was hired by Diesel’s One Race company to assist the actor on location in Atlanta when he was filming Fast Five. Jonasson alleged that one night she was asked to wait in Diesel’s hotel suite. Upon his arrival, Diesel allegedly grabbed her wrists and “pulled her onto the bed.” Jonasson pleaded with Diesel to stop, wrestled out of his grasp and waited by the door for him to leave.
Diesel allegedly approached Jonasson again before groping and kissing her chest.
“Ms. Jonasson was afraid to more forcibly refuse her supervisor, knowing that getting him out of that room was both crucial to her personal safety and job security,” read the court documents. “But this hope died when Vin Diesel dropped to his knees, pushed Ms. Jonasson’s dress up toward her waist, and molested her body.”
Jonasson claimed she attempted to “disassociate” from the assault to “avoid angering” Diesel (born Mark Sinclair) out of fear for her job security. Jonasson further alleged that Diesel’s sister, Samantha Vincent, fired her several hours later.
Jonasson, who had only been working for Diesel for two weeks, claimed that she had another inappropriate encounter with an unnamed One Race supervisor days before Diesel’s alleged assault. She claimed that the manager summoned her to his hotel room and asked her to join him in bed, but she refused.
Jonasson also accused Diesel of discrimination on the basis of sex/gender, intentional infliction of emotional distress, hostile work environment, wrongful termination and retaliation. Additionally, she claimed that Diesel and his team attempted to cover up the incident.
Diesel is best known for playing Dominic Toretto in the Fast and Furious franchise, which released its 10th installment in May. He also serves as a producer on the films alongside Vincent.
Diesel has been dating longtime partner Paloma Jiménez since 2007. They share three children: Hania, Vincent and Pauline.
If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
