Former pop singer Melissa Schuman came forward with a rape accusation against Nick Carter on Tuesday. Schuman detailed a 2002 encounter at Carter’s house where the alleged rape took place.
The Backstreet Boys singer responded to the allegations via a statement on Wednesday. He denied the incident.
Coming forward with an accusation
Melissa Schuman, a former member of the all-girl pop group Dream, came forward with an accusation against Backstreet Boys singer Nick Carter.
Schuman made the accusation of the alleged rape in a detailed blog on Tuesday.
In the post, she explains the two met in the horror film ‘The Hollow’. Carter invited her to his Santa Monica apartment where she went with a friend.
Once there, Schuman explains they began kissing and Carter took her to a bathroom where he locked them up and performed oral sex on her, despite her asking him repeatedly to stop.
“He was stronger and much bigger than me, and there was no way I would be able to open that door or have anyone help me… My friend couldn’t help me, I didn’t even know where she was, ” Schuman wrote.
She claimed he then forced her to perform oral sex on him
“So when he placed my hand on his penis my thought was the only way to get out was to get him to finish what he had started,” Schuman added.
“That’s where I saw myself, my reflection, watching myself do something that I was sickened by. Watching myself be assaulted, forced to engage in an act against my will,” she continued.
“Same as before his appetite was still not satisfied and now took me to the bedroom. It was late. The apartment was now dark and all you could hear was the remaining music in the living room.”
“He threw me on the bed and climbed on top of me. Again, I told him that I was a virgin and I didn’t want to have sex. I told him that I was saving myself for my future husband. I said it over and over again.”
Schuman said she was 18 at the time and a virgin, while Carter was 22. When she told him to stop, saying she was “saving herself” for her husband, he allegedly replied, “I could be your husband.”
She decided to come forward because of this
According to Schuman, after the alleged assaults, she made herself fall asleep and was woken up by a friend. The two left the apartment together without Schuman mentioning anything.
She said she confided in her manager, Nils Larson, at the time of the alleged incident and was advised not to take legal actions since Carter had the most powerful lawyer in the business.
Years later Schuman signed with Carter’s manager Kenneth Crear and recorded several songs, including a duet with Carter but they recorded separately.
“I couldn’t tell my manager that his best friend had raped me so I won’t record this song,” Schuman said.
The former singer explained she decided to come forward after trolls targeted a female fan that claimed Carter had forced her to perform oral sex on him in 2006.
“I feel I have an obligation now to come forward with the hope and intention to inspire and encourage other victims to tell their story,” Schuman wrote.
“We are stronger in numbers. If you are reading this and you have been assaulted, know you don’t have to be silent and you are not alone.”
“Victim shaming is a core reason why victims don’t speak out,” she added.
She also decided to come forward in the wake of the allegations that have rocked Hollywood in the previous weeks.
“The idea of reliving and re-writing the events that were traumatic. Something that I have worked so diligently to heal from is painful,” she said.
“I did, however, promise that if another victim ever came forward I would then feel the responsibility to show my support by sharing my story,” she said.
Nick Carter’s response
Following Schuman’s accusation, Nick Carter released a statement denying the claims and saying the encounter was consensual.
“I am shocked and saddened by Ms. Schuman’s accusations,” Carter said in a statement.
“Melissa never expressed to me while we were together or at any time since that anything we did was not consensual.”
“We went on to record a song and perform together. I was always respectful and supportive of Melissa both personally and professionally.”
“This is the first that I am hearing about these accusations. Nearly two decades later. It is contrary to my nature and everything I hold dear to intentionally cause someone discomfort or harm.”
Carter is married to Lauren Kitt and has a young son. Back in 2006, a raping allegation made by a female fan against him was investigated by the police.
After the case was closed, a rep for Carter said that he had “no physical contact with the woman whatsoever” and claimed she was “hoping to extort money from him”.
Source: The Sun