A bombshell article published by Insider today has seen several people accuse YouTuber Jeffree Star of sexual and physical abuse, among other disturbing allegations. The piece is the result of a months-long investigation by reporters, says the publication.

In some major news coming out of the beauty YouTuber world this morning, Jeffree Star has been accused of sexual assault and physical violence by Insider. The report also suggests that Jeffree Star may have used legal tactics and "hush money" offers of USD $10 000 to encourage alleged victims to recant their stories to the publication (several did, the reporters say). These allegations are reported to have largely taken place in the mid to late 00s, at the height of Star's MySpace fame.

Below are some of the key details listed in the report. Please note that these allegations could be distressing to read.

What has Jeffree Star been accused of?

A lot, actually. Several people who spoke with Insider claimed that Jeffree groped men around him without consent. Other sources claimed that they they “personally saw Star using a close-range stun gun or other tasing device to hurt and intimidate people around him.”

The sources also spoke of an incident with a homeless teen who had reportedly rejected Jeffree's advances in a movie theatre and was later tasered by Star soon after the rejection. "When Arthur failed to respond to Star's affections, the person said, Star got up and walked out of the theater. When the group followed Star into the parking lot, the person added, Star chased Arthur [the former homeless teen] around the car and used a tasing device on him," writes Insider. 

“That teen later stayed the night in Star’s apartment, and told Insider that Star gave him Ambien [a medication used to treat sleeping problems] until he was intoxicated and forcibly performed oral sex on him without his consent.” The story is apparently recounted on a number of internet posts through the years since, and is said to be corroborated by “several people”. Insider outlined the full story of the allegations against Jeffree Star and the teen, along with several others, in the article.

Insider also reports it has text messages between two of the on-the-record sources for this article discussing a USD $10 000 offer from Jeffree to recant their allegations. “One accuser and two claimed witnesses … ultimately did not change their stories,” they write. Several original on-the-record sources later recanted statements to Insider after Star's attorney was made aware of the allegations, the report claims. 

How has Jeffree Star responded to the allegations of sexual and physical abuse?

When contacted by Insider reporters for comment before the story was published, Jeffree Star's lawyer allegedly wrote several letters to Insider denying the allegations, calling some of them, “false and defamatory”, and questioning the reliability of the publication’s sources. The attorney addressed each allegation individually. The responses are outlined in the report. Star has not addressed the claims personally at the time of publication.

The internet responds

As is always the case with beauty YouTuber news, soon after this story broke, Reddit users weighed in. Many commented on the fact Jeffree had once accused James Charles of being a “sexual predator”, saying that this new info proved he was a “massive hypocrite.” 

“And he was calling James Charles a predator for just hitting on straight boys while he was committing serious sexual assault?” one user wrote. “So aaaaaaalll this time he was trying to frame James Charles (he has his issues, but...) and here he is,” another added.

Allegations of sexual assault against Jeffree Star. from r/BeautyGuruChatter

Other users commented on the USD $10 000 "hush money", saying it was a paltry sum considering what Jeffree Star is worth. “The sad part is that I’m not surprised,” one user wrote. “What I am surprised about is that it was only $10,000 in hush money. Those poor accusers got robbed.”

The report comes after Jeffree Star was reportedly robbed by his new boyfriend, basketball player Andrew Marhold. In a now-deleted post, Jeffree had shared a text message screengrab showing him asking Andre to give him back “all the stuff you stole from my house.”

We’ll bring you more updates as the story unfolds.

If you have experienced sexual violence and are in need of crisis support, please call Rape & Domestic Violence Services Australia (1800 respect) or Lifeline Australia (13 11 14).

Main Image Credit: Licensed by Getty