Stephanie McMahon was fully aware of the alleged assault of Ashley Massaro in Kuwait, according to the best friend of the deceased WWE diva.
Before taking her own life in 2019, Massaro had alleged that she was the victim of sexual assault during a WWE tour of a U.S. military base in Kuwait. Massaro claimed that a man posing as a doctor assaulted her and while WWE apologized, they persuaded her to not report it to the appropriate authorities. Following her death, WWE claimed they had never been informed of the allegations.
Addicted to Painkillers
Given Janel Grant’s lawsuit against Vince McMahon, there has been a renewed spotlight on the ex-WWE Chairman’s handling of women during his time in command. Speaking to News Nation, Cara Pipia, a friend of Massaro, claimed that the rigors of wrestling and WWE’s willingness to share muscle relaxants led to a battle with addiction.
“When Ashley first started working for the WWE, she told me that in the locker room, they handed out Soma like it was candy. Soma, it’s a muscle relaxant. So it is what they’d give the wrestlers when they were injured because there was no not wrestling. You had a broken arm, you take a soma and you wrestle.
“And at that point [when the assault happened] she had become addicted to Somas. So she was already in this state, and whatever they administered to her rendered her helpless. Her body was useless to her but her mind was there and she saw what was happening.”
Left in Kuwait
During the interview, Pipia recalled Massaro telling her that WWE had left her in Kuwait after the alleged assault. Pipia said that while WWE did eventually get Ashley home, it was not the company’s priority.
“They got her a flight, days after everyone was already home. She was left alone. Because they had to go back to work. Vince wanted them back in the USA because they had work to do.”
Stephanie McMahon Knew of Assault
“She spoke with Vince McMahon many times. Vince had his daughter [Stephanie] take his place because she was a female, a woman, and to make Ashley comfortable. And they just played with her. They played with her because everything that Stephanie said made her feel comfortable. Safe. As soon as they walked into this board room meeting, Ashley was on her own completely. And she was threatened, and there was no… there was no compassion. There was no sympathy. There was nothing.”
Cara also mentioned that Ashley had some support within WWE but those who were sympathetic to her had no notable power to stop WWE from pressuring her to keep quiet.
“Right before she walked into that boardroom, she talked to the locker room doctor who was aware of everything and she was actually very sympathetic to her but he had no pull. He gave her the advice that he could, but that was it.”
Responding to John Lauriniatis
While WWE claimed at the time of her death that they were unaware of the alleged assault, John Lauriniatis recently claimed that most upper-level management were aware of the allegations. Pipia was asked about John Lauriniaitis’ statement, and how it feels to hear a former WWE exec say people knew of the allegations after years of WWE claiming that was not the case.
“It’s about time somebody had a conscience. Because there was never a single moment of time that I didn’t believe a word that Ash had told me.”
A Message to Vince McMahon
When asked what she’d say to Vince McMahon, Pipia made her point perfectly clear.
“‘Shame on you. How do you look at yourself?’ Obviously, he’s got problems. Obviously, he’s a sexual deviant. He needs help, he’s not well. The problem is that people with that kind of sickness and that mindset are power, why do they thrive for so long?
“Why doesn’t anybody stand up? Why are there so many people in that company aware of what’s going on to all these women? Women who keep committing suicide year after year after year. And nobody stands up and says anything. Nobody tries to protect these young women? Why? Because it’s not just Vince, it’s the whole frickin’ company!”
In her final question, Pipia was asked if she believes the alleged assault on Massaro contributed to Ashley’s suicide and said “99%. Absolutely.”
For the use of quotes, please give an H/T to SE Scoops.
