Asta Jonasson has accused Vin Diesel of sexual assault. The accident happened back in 2010 when Vin was shooting for ‘Fast Five’. His assistant claims that Vin cornered her and engaged in a sexual act right in front of her.
She requested that he stop and walk towards the door, but he approached her and started to grope her breasts and kiss her chest, according to the suit. When he attempted to undress her, she cried out and bolted for the loo, the suit alleges.
According to Jonasson, Diesel pushed her up against the wall, made her touch his erect penis, and then started masturbating.
“Ms. Jonasson was unable to escape and closed her eyes, scared of angering Vin Diesel by rejecting him further and trying to dissociate, wishing the assault would end,” the suit alleges.
The lawsuit claims that a few hours later, Diesel’s sister, Samantha Vincent, who serves as the company president, called Jonasson and dismissed her.
“It was clear to her that she was being fired because she was no longer used by Diesel to fulfill his sexual desires and she had resisted his sexual assaults,” the suit alleges. “Ms. Jonasson felt like she was a piece of trash to be discarded. Ms. Jonasson felt helpless, her self-esteem was demolished, and she questioned her skills and whether a successful career would require her to trade her body for advancement.”
What does Diesel’s legal team have to say about the issue?
Diesel’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, refuted the accusations in a statement released on Thursday afternoon.
“Let me be very clear: Vin Diesel categorically denies this claim in its entirety,” Freedman said. “This is the first he has ever heard about this more than 13-year-old claim made by a purportedly 9-day employee. There is clear evidence that completely refutes these outlandish allegations.”
Has Jonasson been a victim of sexual abuse before?
Under California’s Sexual Abuse and Cover-Up Accountability Act, a 2022 law that established a one-year window for filing some lawsuits that would otherwise be outside of the statute of limitations, Jonasson filed the sexual battery claim.
The defendant must have made an effort to conceal at least one prior accusation of sexual assault for the lawsuit to be accepted.
The lawsuit claims that Jonasson was approached by another supervisor at One Race, his place of employment, a few days before the diesel incident.
As per the grievance, the supervisor called her to his St. Regis hotel room, undressed, got into bed, and beckoned her to come.
The lawsuit claims that Ms. Jonasson “immediately left the room and the hotel, appalled.”
In addition to the accusation of sexual battery, the lawsuit makes accusations of wrongful termination, retaliation, gender discrimination, and careless supervision.
