Seal groped me, then berated me for ‘skimpy attire’
POP star Seal is being investigated for sexual assault in the US after a former neighbour claimed he groped and tried to kiss her.
The Killer singer vehemently denies the allegations made by US actress Tracey Birdsall, 54.
She said Seal, 54, grabbed her breasts and repeatedly tried to kiss her when she went to his home to pick up a salad spinner.
Ms Birdsall claims that when she rejected his advances, he berated her for wearing shorts and a vest top and suggested she was asking for the attention due to her skimpy outfit. The actress told the showbusiness website TMZ the pair had become close friends throughout the autumn of 2016 when they were neighbours in Los Angeles.
However, the mother of three claims the friendship came to an abrupt end when the London-born singer tried to force himself on her.
Seal, the former husband of model Heidi Klum and father of their three children, is alleged to have lunged at the actress while she stood in his kitchen. Ms Birdsall said she shouted, ‘What are you doing?’ when he made advances on her, to which Seal allegedly replied: ‘I’m kissing you.’
She claims the singer, whose real name is Henry Olusegun Adeola Samuel, then ridiculed her for her choice of clothing and groped her breasts. She said she demanded he stop but claims that while they were sitting on the couch shortly afterwards, he touched her inappropriately again. Seal is being investigated for sexual battery by the LA County Sheriff’s Department, TMZ reports.
A representative for Seal said he ‘vehemently denies the recent allegations made against him’.
‘He intends to vigorously defend himself against these false allegations,’ they added.
Ms Birdsall initially made the claims in a now-deleted Facebook post. She said she was prompted to come forward following Seal’s criticism of Oprah Winfrey.
The Kiss From A Rose singer had shared a picture on Instagram of Oprah embracing Harvey Weinstein with the text: ‘Oh I forgot, that’s right ..... you’d heard the rumours but you had no idea he was actually serially assaulting young stary-eyed [sic] actresses who in turn had no idea what they were getting into. My bad. #SanctimoniousHollywood.’
‘Seal vehemently denies the claims’