Vince McMahon and Wife Named in Disturbing New Lawsuit

In a new lawsuit, five former WWE employees allege they suffered abuse while working for the wrestling company during the 1980s. Named in the suit are WWE executives Vince McMahon, his wife Linda, and WWE’s parent company, TKO Group.

The plaintiffs claim the McMahons were aware of alleged abuse carried out by Melvin Phillips Jr., a WWE ring crew chief and ringside announcer, who reportedly groomed and exploited underage boys hired to assist at WWE events.

The suit contends that Vince and Linda McMahon “knowingly allowed” Phillips to bring young boys into WWE’s orbit with promises of exclusive access to WWE shows and famous wrestlers.

“The WWE and McMahons had a responsibility to these underaged boys, and they failed them in the worst way possible,” stated Mark DiCello, founding partner of DiCello Levitt, the law firm representing the plaintiffs. “We will vigorously fight to uncover the truth about this systemic, insidious, and life-altering abuse,” he added, as reported by Front Office Sports.

According to the complaint, some of the alleged victims were as young as 12 or 13, many coming from broken homes. The boys were lured with the promise of special WWE experiences otherwise unattainable to them, and abuse allegedly took place in hotels, wrestling venues, and “in plain sight,” sometimes with WWE personnel witnessing the events, TMZ reported.

“These courageous clients give us the chance to hold accountable those who allowed and enabled the open, rampant sexual abuse of these young boys,” Greg Gutzler, another DiCello Levitt attorney, said.

The abuse allegations first surfaced in 1992 when Miami Herald reporter Alex Marvez broke the story. The report led to an FBI investigation, though no criminal charges were filed. However, Phillips and two WWE employees, Pat Patterson and Terry Garvin, resigned. Patterson was later rehired and continued with WWE until his death in 2020.

The allegations against WWE come amid broader scrutiny of its culture. Ann Callis, an attorney for Janel Grant—a plaintiff in a separate lawsuit against McMahon and WWE—commented, “Vince McMahon made sexual abuse and human trafficking a hallmark of WWE’s culture for decades. Survivors like Janel Grant and other former WWE employees deserve their day in court.”