Seal denies allegations he groped neighbor as LA police begin investigation
- Singer Seal has been accused of groping and trying to kiss his neighbor
- Actress Tracey Birdsall claims Seal attacker her in his LA home in 2016
- The 54-year-old singer is now being investigated for sexual battery
The singer Seal has been accused of making unwanted sexual advances by a former neighbour.
Tracey Birdsall, 54, claims she visited Seal, also 54, in his Los Angeles home in 2016 and that he forced himself on her, groped her and tried to kiss her.
Seal, whose real name is Henry Olusegun Adeola Samuel, is now under investigation for sexual battery by the L.A. County Sheriff's Department.
Accused: Seal, pictured left, allegedly forced himself on his neighbor, actress Tracey Birdsall, right, in his home in LA in 2016
Ms Birdsall, an actress, told TMZ that the attack took place in Seal's kitchen after she had gone over to retrieve a kitchen appliance she lent him, when he 'suddenly lunged at her'.
She claims that she rejected his advances and that he then moved on to 'insinuate that she was asking for it' by commenting on the shorts and tank top she was wearing before groping her breasts.
Sexual battery is an unwanted form of contact with an intimate part of the body for a that is made for sexual purposes.
A representative for Seal told TMZ that he vehemently denies the 'false' allegations.
Ms Birdsall initially made the allegations in a now-removed Facebook post after Seal criticized Oprah Winfrey following her Golden Globes speech, claiming she knew about the rumors surrounding Harvey Weinstein but did nothing.
The singer posted this meme with a pointed caption lashing out at Oprah on Wednesday following her inspirational Golden Globes speech that focused on the Me Too movement
Oprah's inspirational speech while accepting the Cecil B. DeMille award focused on the plight of sex abuse victims, but Seal (right) said she ignored the rumors about Weinstein
The singer posted an Instagram meme showing two images or Oprah with Harvey Weinstein, using the hashtag #SanctimoniousHollywood.
He was soon taken to task by model Chrissy Teigen, who posted a cryptic comment on his Instagram post.
The model and cookbook author wrote: 'Hmm. Let’s just say we’ve all heard things about each other, haven’t we?'
Seal later backtracked on the criticism, sating he had not been targeting Oprah specifically, but the industry in general.
In a video clip he shared on social media on Thursday, he claimed that has 'an enormous amount of respect for everything that Oprah has achieved and contributed in her life'.
Dig: The model and cookbook author, who is married to John Legend, posted a cryptic comment underneath his post
Spoke out: Chrissy Teigen took singer Seal to task after he posted a meme to Instagram attacking Oprah Winfrey for ignoring rumors about Harvey Weinstein
'What I reposted was not an attack on Oprah at all. She just happened to be the person photographed with the pig in the picture.
'What I reposted was commentary on the hypocritical and double standard nature and behavior of Hollywood.'
He went on to state that none of the women who had come forward as victims of Weinstein had received any real justice.
He said that 'losing your job' for raping, sexually abusing or sexually harassing a woman 'is not punishment.'
Most watched News videos
- Horrific moment van smashes head-on into other vehicle at 50mph
- Kate receives flowers from young boy during Bletchley Park visit
- Hilarious moment cat grabs mail after waiting for postie
- Spanish matador wipes away tears of bull before killing it
- Model admits injecting 59″ booty filler was a big mistake
- Shocking video shows huge row between diners at Wetherspoons
- Wrestlers surround Silver King after he collapses in ring
- Antoinette Sandbach is interrupted by an alarm in Commons chamber
- Fans destroy and customize James Charles palettes after scandal
- Stepping into a Croc filled with shaving foam is satisfying
- Amazing footage reveals how Melburnians lived in 1967
- Dramatic Met Police footage shows moment of moped gang arrests
