Porn actor Ron Jeremy charged with assaulting teen, 12 more women

Adult film performer Ron Jeremy has been charged with sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl and a dozen more women, Los Angeles prosecutors said Monday.

The controversial star of the pornographic industry, who appeared in over 1,700 hardcore movies, had already been charged in June with raping three women and sexually assaulting a fourth.

His arrest and court appearance at the time prompted a flurry of new claims against the 67-year-old.

Jeremy was being transported from county jail to court for his latest arraignment Monday and will plead not guilty to the latest charges, his attorney told AFP.

The 20 new charges date back to 2004, when Jeremy allegedly sexually assaulted an unnamed teenage girl at a party in Santa Clarita, just outside Los Angeles.

The alleged victims are aged between 15 and 54, and most recently include an alleged sexual assault outside a business in Hollywood on New Year's Day this year.

The latest charges include five counts of forcible rape, three counts of forcible oral copulation, six counts of sexual battery by restraint, and one of lewd conduct with a teenage girl.

If convicted, the defendant -- who now faces 28 total counts of sexual violence in Los Angeles county -- could face 250 years to life in prison.

Jeremy -- whose real name is Ronald Jeremy Hyatt -- appeared in famous adult movies including "Deep Throat II" and "John Wayne Bobbitt Uncut."

With his trademark moustache, he was one of the adult industry's most recognizable stars among the wider public.

But he has long been dogged by assault claims and barred from industry events in recent years.

After the initial charges were brought against Jeremy in June, his attorney Stuart Goldfarb denied all the allegations and insisted his client was "not a rapist."

"Ron -- over the years, because of who he is -- has essentially been a paramour to over 4,000 women. And to allege that he is a rapist is beyond... I mean, women throw themselves at him," he added.

Jeremy himself tweeted in June that he was "innocent of all charges" and couldn't wait to "prove my innocence in court!"

Jeremy is the latest high-profile entertainment industry figure to be investigated for sexual abuse in Los Angeles since the #MeToo movement began in 2017.

Los Angeles prosecutors earlier this year filed charges against disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein.

At least 20 men in the entertainment industry are reported to be part of a Los Angeles district attorney's taskforce set up in the wake of the #MeToo movement.

© 2020 AFP