Former family friends of Michael Jackson have raised a lawsuit against his estate, alleging that they were ‘groomed and brainwashed’ by the late musician.
Siblings Frank, Dominic, Marie-Nicole, and Aldo Cascio have filed a new complaint as part of a related attempt to void a prior financial settlement with Jackson’s estate.
This, they have described as ‘an unlawful agreement to silence victims of childhood sexual abuse.’
Once Jackson’s most ardent defenders, the Cascio family were frequently known as the star’s ‘second family.’
However, they have since alleged that they were themselves victims of a ‘decade-long campaign’ of abuse that began when some were as young as seven.
A new lawsuit, filed on Friday in a federal court in Los Angeles, alleges that the abuse occurred over extended periods worldwide.
The 23-page lawsuit, as obtained by Rolling Stone, reads: ‘Michael Jackson was a serial child predator who, over the course of more than a decade, drugged, raped, and sexually assaulted each of the plaintiffs, beginning when some were as young as seven or eight.’
It goes on to claim that the abuse occurred in multiple locations, which included visits by Jackson to the siblings’ family home.
Describing the family as ‘groomed and brainwashed,’ it alleges that Jackson used his fame and wealth to gain the Cascios’ trust, plying them with expensive gifts and sustained attention.
He then allegedly isolated the children from responsible adults before plying them with drugs and alcohol, while exposing them to pornography and abusing each on an individual basis.
The document claims that Jackson sexually assaulted Edward during interstate and international travel, in locations which included the United Kingdom and his Neverland Ranch.
Siblings Dominic, Aldo and Marie-Nicole were also allegedly assaulted at Neverland Ranch, as well as several international locations related to Jackson’s music tours.
Additionally, it is claimed that Aldo and Marie-Nicole were assaulted at the Cascio family home.
The Cascio children previously formed Jackson’s defence during his infamous 2005 trial.
The pop star was tried following claims from a boy named Gavin Arvizo, who alleged that Jackson gave him alcohol, showed him pornography, and committed acts of sexual molestation.
Jackson was ultimately exonerated of these charges and died four years later, in 2009, after overdosing on a prescription anaesthetic.
After Jackson’s death, his alleged crimes became the subject of the documentary Leaving Neverland, which explored Wade Robson and James Safechuck’s claims that he assaulted them both in the 1980s and 1990s.
According to the Cascio family, it was this 2019 documentary which inspired them to come forward with their own experiences.
Last month, Jackson’s former public relations agent also revealed how he felt Jackson was ‘guilty’ of the charges levelled against him.
Vincent Amen, who worked for Jackson during the early 2000s, appears in the Channel 4 documentary Michael Jackson: The Trial.
Speaking to The Telegraph about his participation, Amen said: ‘I absolutely believe that Michael Jackson is guilty of child abuse and molestation.’
Amen initially joined Jackson’s entourage in 2003 to help manage the fallout of the controversial Martin Bashir documentary, Living With Michael Jackson.
It was while preparing for Jackson’s trial that Amen said he discovered a ‘naturist magazine’ among his belongings.
According to Amen, this publication contained advertisements for videos of ‘naked kids,’ which he claimed had been marked for order.
‘Finding that, I realised, “Something is going on here”,’ Amen continued. ‘Where there’s smoke, there is fire.’
Amen said that this discovery prompted him to believe that he’d been misled, and claims that he spoke to prosecutors about the case.
However, he was ultimately not called to testify.
Reflecting on his relationship to Jackson, Amen said: ‘I do not have any regrets – when I saw something that was concerning, which I believe would indicate child sex abuse, I did the right thing, and I came forward.’
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