The man who claimed he had underage sex
with the puppeteer behind "Sesame Street" character Elmo recanted his
claims on Tuesday, U.S. media reported.
The unnamed man, now 23, had claimed that
Elmo puppeteer Kevin Clash had a sexual relationship with him when the accuser
was 16 years old, potentially engulfing one of the biggest childhood brands in
an underage sex scandal.
"He wants it to be known that his
sexual relationship with Mr. Clash was an adult consensual relationship,"
the law firm Andreozzi and Associates, who represent the man, told U.S. media
outlets in a statement.
Clash, 52, who had denied the allegations,
said in a statement obtained by Reuters on Tuesday: "I am relieved that
this painful allegation has been put to rest. I will not discuss it further."
New York-based Sesame Workshop said on
Monday that its own inquiry had concluded that the claims of underage sexual
conduct against Clash were unsubstantiated.
"We are pleased that this matter has
been brought to a close, and we are happy that Kevin can move on from this
unfortunate episode," Sesame Workshop said in a statement on Tuesday.
Clash, 52, the voice of Elmo for nearly
three decades, had acknowledged a past relationship with his accuser but said
on Monday the pair were both consenting adults at the time. He termed the
allegations "false and defamatory."
"I am a gay man. I have never been
ashamed of this or tried to hide it," Clash said on Monday, saying he was
taking a break from the TV show to deal with the situation.
Sesame Workshop said the allegations
involving Clash came to its attention in June when the accuser first contacted
the company by email. A company executive said it had found "absolutely no
evidence that the allegations were true."
The Elmo character debuted on "Sesame
Street" in 1979. While Clash was the third performer to animate the
child-like shaggy red monster, Sesame Workshop credits him with turning Elmo
into the international sensation he became.
(Reporting By Eric Kelsey and Piya
Sinha-Roy, editing by Jill Serjeant and Cynthia Johnston)
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