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Chef Mario Batali charged in Boston for alleged sexual assault
NEW YORK, May 24, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – US celebrity chef Mario Batali, who has
been accused of sexual assault by several women, faces charges for allegedly
groping a woman in 2017 in Boston, prosecutors and the accuser’s lawyer said
Thursday.
The Seattle-born chef, 58, has faced a series of allegations since December
2017 but this was the first time he has been criminally charged.
Batali will be arraigned on Friday in Boston Municipal Court for indecent
assault and battery, the prosecutor’s office said.
The alleged assault dates to April 2017. The accuser reportedly met the
chef while they were dining separately at the same restaurant, the Towne
Stove and Spirits, not far from Batali’s restaurant Eataly.
Seeing that the young woman was trying to take a picture of him, Batali
asked her to join him for a selfie. Once she was beside him, the chef
allegedly kissed and groped her.
The name of Batali’s accuser does not appear in the Suffolk County
indictment dated April 4, according to the Boston Globe.
But the charges include allegations in a civil case against Batali filed
last August by a Massachusetts woman named Natali Tene, 28, who was claiming
damages for an unspecified amount.
Tene’s lawyer, Eric Baum, confirmed she is the accuser.
“Natali is grateful that the Suffolk County District Attorney’s office in
Boston has chosen to go forward in prosecuting Mario Batali,” he said.
“Mario Batali abused his celebrity status… while taking the photograph,
Mario Batali groped her breasts, buttocks and genitals and kissed her
repeatedly without consent,” Baum said in a statement.
“He must be held accountable criminally and civilly for his despicable
acts.”
Batali’s lawyer Anthony Fuller said the charges, “brought by the same
individual without any new basis, are without merit.”
“He intends to fight the allegations vigorously and we expect the outcome
to fully vindicate Mr. Batali,” he told CNN.
The first charges Batali faced were published by the specialized site Eater
in December 2017, amid the #MeToo movement.
More accusations followed against the once-prestigious chef, known for his
red ponytail and orange Croc shoes.
Those allegations led him to apologize publicly for making “many mistakes,”
to take a sidelined role at his businesses and leave “The Chew” television
program.
BSS/AFP/GMR/0825 hrs