Nick Carter is denying sexual assault allegations regarding an incident that allegedly took place in 2001. Earlier this week, a woman named Shannon “Shay” Ruth claimed that the Backstreet Boy raped her on the band’s tour bus when she was 17 years old after a concert in Tacoma, Washington. Ruth has since filed a lawsuit against Carter.
Carter’s lawyer, Michael Holtz, provided a statement to CNN today (December 9).
“This claim about an incident that supposedly took place more than 20 years ago is not only legally meritless but also entirely untrue,” the statement read. “Unfortunately, for several years now, Ms. Ruth has been manipulated into making false allegations about Nick – and those allegations have changed repeatedly and materially over time.”
During a press conference held in Beverley Hills this past Thursday, Ruth stated, “The last 21 years have been filled with pain, confusion, frustration, shame, and self-harm that are a direct result of Nick Carter raping me.”
This isn’t the first time Carter has been accused of sexual assault. Back in 2017, Melissa Shuman from girl group Dream accused Carter of rape while they were filming a movie in 2002.
As a result of the most recent allegations, ABC has pulled the upcoming Backstreet Boys holiday special, “A Very Backstreet Holiday” from its scheduled broadcast. It was set to air Tuesday, December 14, however, ABC will now reportedly play reruns of comedy episodes in its place.