NYPD investigating Russell Simmons for sexual assault claims

"We anticipate there will be more who come forward," an NYPD source said

Dec 15, 2017

The NYPD is now investigating Russell Simmons for the multiple claims of sexual abuse and assault being laid against him.

An anonymous source at the NYPD told the L.A. Times that the police are looking into the growing accusations. Detectives have initiated contact with the women to look into their claims.

“We were made aware of the alleged crime through the media, and we anticipate there will be more who come forward,” the NYPD source told the Times.

“We’re in the process of setting up interviews and if any victims want to come forward, they should contact us,” the source added.

One accuser, Sherri Hines, said that Simmons raped her in the 1980s. She told the Times that detectives contacted her on Thursday, confirming police involvement in the matter.

In all, a total of 11 women have come forward to accuse Simmons of sexual misconduct. The accusations range from sexual harassment to rape, with Keri Claussen Khalighi and Jenny Lumet adding their voices to the growing outcry on top of the nine other women who earlier this week published their accusations.

Most of these allegations reportedly took place in New York City.

Simmons says #NotMe

Simmons, who has stepped down from his involvement in his companies, denied that did anything unlawful. In an Instagram post, he promised that he would “properly” defend himself and “prove without any doubt that I am innocent of all rape charges.”

Additionally, Simmons’ Instagram post had a #NotMe image, a play on the #MeToo campaign in which millions of women have shared their stories of sexual harassment, assault, and abuse.

It probably wasn’t the best of ideas for Simmons to co-opt that movement to make his denial. And the Internet was sure to let him know exactly what they thought of his #NotMe post.

Polygraph Test

Simmons also recently took the lie detector test to clear his name. He says the results prove he didn’t force Khalighi to perform oral sex.

Simmons’ attorneys, Michael Sterling and E. Carlos Tanner, say that the results clear his name and that he will take the test for four other allegations made against him. Once he takes the test for all of those allegations, he will make the results public, they say.

What’s more, the legal team called for Khalighi and other accusers to do the same and submit to a polygraph.