Sport agent Jonathan Barnett accused of rape in US lawsuit

High-profile British sports agent Jonathan Barnett has been accused of raping a woman more than 39 times, in a US lawsuit.

In a civil complaint lodged at a US district court in Los Angeles, the unnamed woman, referred to as "Jane Doe", says Mr Barnett "trafficked" her from Australia to the UK in 2017, "tortured" and kept her as a "sex slave" over a six year period.

She says Mr Barnett made "repeated threats to her life and the lives of her minor children".

The 75-year-old known for representing leading footballers including Gareth Bale and Jack Grealish, says the charges "have no basis in reality and are untrue".

"We will vigorously defend this lawsuit through the appropriate legal process. I am looking forward to being entirely vindicated and exonerated," a statement from his lawyers said.

Mr Barnett was ranked as the world's most powerful sports agent in 2019 by Forbes magazine.

He co-founded London-based sports agency Stellar Group in 1994, eventually selling it to Hollywood talent agency ICM Partners in 2020. ICM was later bought by larger rival CAA in a deal that merged two of the world's biggest agencies.

The civil case against Mr Barnett, filed on Wednesday, uses the name CAA Stellar throughout to refer to his sports agency.

According to court documents, the pair first met in the 1990s through a professional athlete in London and reconnected online and then in person in 2017.

Within a matter of weeks she relocated to the UK with her teenage children - with sports agency CAA Stellar, headed by Mr Barnett, covering moving expenses.

The filing says that upon her arrival, he told her he "owned" her and raped her in a hotel room.

Mr Barnett went on to impose strict rules to obey him at all times, referring to him as "My Master" and to "never say it hurts", according to the lawsuit.

The complaint goes on to describe alleged degrading acts that included drinking urine or ingesting faeces.

The alleged torture also included the woman "tied up overnight without food or water".

She says she was "trafficked, threatened, tortured, and held" in bondage in different locations throughout the world, including Los Angeles, from 2017 to 2023.

"Realising she was powerless against a dangerous predator, Ms Doe submitted to Barnett in order to avoid being severely beaten or even killed," the lawsuit said.

"Jane Doe" is also suing Hollywood talent firm Creative Artists Agency and sports agency CAA Stellar, where Mr Barnett was executive chairman until his retirement last year.

The court documents state the CAA Stellar's parent companies, talent agencies ICM and CAA, "failed to find and/or willfully or recklessly disregarded" that substantial payments were made between 2017 and 2023, despite the woman not being an athlete or agent.

It is claimed Barnett referred to her as "slave" in emails sent from his work account.

Court documents say Mr Barnett used his "money and power to maintain coercive control" over the woman who was "in fear of her life and the lives of her children".

Lawyers for "Jane Doe" state the case is about "institutional abuse at the highest level".

They are seeking compensation on her behalf.

According to LA Times, CAA said it first heard of the woman's allegations last year when her lawyers made settlement demands - and the press inquired.

"While the complaint attempts to connect these allegations to CAA's business, Ms Doe has never been an employee, consultant, or contractor of CAA, ICM, or Stellar, nor has she ever had any business connection to CAA, ICM, or Stellar," CAA said in its statement.

"CAA takes any allegations of this nature seriously, and through counsel, promptly urged Ms Doe to contact law enforcement in the United Kingdom."