Ravens’ Justin Tucker Accused of Inappropriate Sexual Behavior
Six local massage therapists have come forward with sexual misconduct accusations against Baltimore Ravens star kicker Justin Tucker, the Baltimore Banner reports. Several of those therapists claimed Tucker’s behavior was “so egregious” that they ended sessions early and/or refused to work with him again, and two spas allegedly banned him from returning.
The Banner began investigating after receiving a tip earlier this month, and the six women the paper spoke with said the incidents took place between 2012 – Tucker’s rookie year – and 2016.
“I’ve told people about this over the years, and they either act like it’s hot goss[ip] or a joke,” said one therapist who worked on Tucker in 2016. “But it was really degrading.”
Tucker’s attorneys, Thomas A. Claire and Steven J. Harrison, denied all allegations, describing them as speculative and “impossible to prove.” They also claimed Tucker was never banned from any spas.
“Mr. Tucker has never behaved inappropriately during any massage therapy session, and certainly never in the manner described by The Banner’s reporting,” the lawyers said. “Any suggestion to the contrary is a fictitious and utterly baseless claim.”
Both the Ravens and the NFL declined to comment on the matter.
Most of the women, who chose identified by only a letter for the sake of privacy, said they did not know each other before sharing their stories with The Banner, but their accounts share several similarities. Five of them said Tucker asked them to massage his pelvic region/inner thighs while he had an erection, two said he brushed them with his exposed penis, and three said they found a wet spot after he left, which they believed to be ejaculate.
A representative of Ojas, a local high-end spa chain, claimed Tucker was banned as a client after “a massage therapist reported an incident that allegedly occurred during a massage therapy session with Justin Tucker.” Owners of Studio 921, a now-closed spa in Locust Point, shared a similar statement through their attorneys.
Many of the women interviewed said they believed Tucker’s actions started slowly, but they believed he was being deliberate after multiple actions. To this day, they say they’re still affected by his actions.
“I can’t watch sports anymore. I see his face everywhere,” said J., one of the massage therapists.
Michael Belsky, an attorney at SBWD Law Firm who specializes in sexual abuse and harassment cases, is representing four of the women who spoke to The Banner, as well as one who didn’t.
“The allegations of exploitation that have come from my clients are voluminous, very similar and very troubling,” Belsky told The Banner. “Each of my clients has expressed profound, long-lasting impact as a result of these allegations.”
