[imagesource: WWE]

He may have turned WWF Wrestling, which later changed its name to WWE Wrestling, into a global business empire, but Vince McMahon is no longer the CEO of the organisation.

Last month, 76-year-old McMahon “voluntarily” stepped down after allegations that he paid hush money to an employee he had sexual relations with came to light. Rita Chatterton, the first female referee for what was then the WWF, then revisited her rape accusation against McMahon, dating back to 1986.

When it rains, it pours, and all sorts of skeletons are now tumbling out of the closet. The Wall Street Journal reports that McMahon agreed to pay $12 million in hush money to four different women in order to keep allegations of sexual misconduct and infidelity a secret.

Here’s a summary of that report via ESPN:

McMahon allegedly paid out $7.5 million to the former wrestler, who claimed that McMahon coerced her into giving him oral sex, demoted her and then decided not to renew her contract in 2005 after she resisted further sexual encounters with him, per the Journal report. The wrestler and her lawyer reportedly negotiated a non-disclosure agreement with McMahon in 2018…

Image: Muscle and Fitness

In addition, McMahon allegedly sent unsolicited naked photos of himself to a WWE contractor and sexually harassed her on the job, leading to about a $1 million non-disclosure settlement in 2008. In a 2006 agreement, a former WWE manager was paid $1 million to stay silent about McMahon initiating a sexual relationship with her.

WWE executive John Laurinaitis is also under investigation amidst claims he had a sexual relationship with the same former paralegal involved with the allegedly $3 million payment with McMahon.

Laurinaitis also allegedly paid $1,5 million as part of a non-disclosure agreement with a female employee who claimed sexual misconduct in 2012.

Despite the allegations against him, McMahon hasn’t been keeping a low profile. He was seen in Las Vegas at UFC 276 last weekend with his daughter Stephanie and her husband Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque, who are currently running the company.

The Wall Street Journal’s report was published on Friday. Hours later, the latest episode of Friday Night SmackDown went ahead with McMahon active behind the scenes.

Although he arrived late, he never mentioned the report, leading to what one reporter called “the elephant in the room that was being ignored”.

[sources:wsj&espn]