Actress Asia Argento, who has been accused of sexually assaulting musician Jimmy Bennett, has claimed that it was Bennett who sexually assaulted her when he was 17 years old. Argento's lawyer Mark Jay Heller told TMZ that Bennett had "sexually attacked" her at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Marina del Rey, California in 2013 and he was lucky she decided not to prosecute him.
The allegations first surfaced last month when it was revealed that Argento had secretly paid off Bennet, after he accused her of sexually assaulting him when he was 17. This news sent shockwaves around the world, as Argento had been one of the most outspoken supporters of the #MeToo movement, which dealt with sexual harrassment, following the Harvey Weinstein revelations, when it was reported that Weinstein had sexually assaulted and raped multiple women over the course of his career. These accusations were followed by a string of allegations against other powerful celebrities including actors Kevin Spacey and Jeffery Tambor and medipersons like Matt Lauer and Charlie Rose.
According to US media reports, Argento had attempted to buy Bennett's silence by paying him $380,000, in an out-of-court settlement. Argento and her attorney came under much fire when they claimed that it was in fact Argento's beau, the late chef Anthony Bourdain - who tragically committed suicide earlier this year, who had paid off Bennett.
Heller said that the Land of the Dead star has refused to pay Bennett the balance of the settlement - $130,000 - because the arrangement was made by Bourdain before he took his own life in June. The pair met in 2004 when Argento cast Bennett to play her son in The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things.
(With IANS inputs)
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