Further accusations have come to light against Jeffree Star.
An on-going investigation by journalist Kat Tenbarge for Insider has revealed that YouTuber and cosmetics founder Jeffree Star reportedly paid $45,000 in hush-money to a victim that has come forward about being sexually assaulted by the controversial public figure.
Tenbarge’s latest development comes off the back of a lengthy exposé published on October 2nd in which former friends, colleagues, and fans shared stories of the YouTuber preying on men— including drugging and forcing oral sex on a teen, using a short-range stun gun to intimidate people around him, and frequently groping men at his music performances.
However, some sources retracted their statements prior to publication, and screenshots obtained by Insider led Tenbarge to believe Jeffree Star offered $10,000 in hush-money to victims and witnesses who revoked their statements.
On December 7th, 2020, tea blog Sticky Drama seemingly confirmed Tenbarge’s suspicions.
The drama blog obtained documentation that details a settlement agreement between Jeffree Star and alleged sexual assault victim Gage Arthur, who was one of the Insider sources to retract his statement earlier this year. Gage originally told Tenbarge that Jeffree attacked him with a taser gun after rejecting his advances when he was just 17-years-old. Arthur claimed Jeffree then gave him Ambien pills until he was intoxicated and performed non-consensual oral sex on him.
Shortly after Sticky Drama’s post, Insider spoke with the source of the leaked document and corroborated its validity.
According to Tenbarge’s piece published today, Jeffree Star Cosmetics CFO Scott C. Andrews authorised a cashier’s check for $45,000 to Gage Arthur on September 28, 2020, just days after he retracted his statements to Insider.
The settlement agreement allegedly lists the following conditions to Arthur’s $45,000 payout:
a) Within two (2) business days of signing this Agreement, Mr. Arthur shall be paid twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000).
b) If Business Insider does not publish the article about Mr. Star within three (3) months of the Effective Date, Mr. Arthur shall receive an additional twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000).
c) Anthony Vanity and Dani Artaud have also retracted their statements to Business Insider. Mr. Arthur shall receive an additional ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for contacting each Mr. Vanity and Ms. Artaud for a total of an additional twenty thousand dollars ($20,000).
Of those three conditions, Arthur was likely paid out for A and C.
Insider reports they reviewed a screenshot of an email exchange between Jeffree’s attorneys and Arthur which read, “Full agreement, signed by Jeffree, attached. As a reminder, this is all confidential.”
These allegations are amongst mounting criticism of the beauty mogul over the last year, including his involvement with musician Dahvie Vanity— who has been accused of sexual abuse towards underaged girls, some as young as 12 years old. Jeffree has also been exposed for past racist behaviour, such as using the n-word and posting with the confederate flag, as well as playing a calculated role in attempting to ruin James Charles’ career in the 2019 BYE SISTER saga.