Michael Jackson's nephews Taj, TJ and Taryll Jackson have filed a $100-million (Rs 6,700-crore) libel suit against a celebrity gossip website for publishing stories in which they accused the popstar of sexual abuse. The lawsuit is related to a number of stories published by Radar Online last month, which alleged that Michael collected "images of pornography, animal torture, S&M and gore in a bid to seduce innocent young boys", according to The Guardian.
The Radar Online reports were supposedly based on a 2003 police raid of the the King of Pop's house in Neverland. An article also claimed that he had used his nephews photographs in their underwear "to excite young boys".
The Jacksons refuted the stories as false and defamatory and claimed they had damaged all three of them "personally and professionally". Their lawyer, Bert Fields, wrote in the lawsuit: "Radar has tried to profit by launching a vicious and unrelenting attack on [Jackson] based on claims that, years ago, he was guilty of sexual abuse, even though, at the time, he was found 'not guilty' of that very charge." He added in the case that Radar had "misrepresented" the "Detective Reports" it claimed are new.
American Media Inc , which owns Radar Online, released a statement in defense of the suit, saying that their article clearly stated that the "detectives reported Michael Jackson may have used photos of his nephews 'to excite young boys'". It added that the allegations were "presented by the prosecution during Michael Jackson's 2005 criminal trial".
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