Afrika Bambaataa has officially lost a civil case accusing him of child sexual abuse and trafficking.
He reportedly lost the case because he failed to show up to court, and the judge had no choice but to issue a default judgment “without opposition. ”
According to Rolling Stone, the lawsuit was brought in 2021 by a man who says Bambaataa began abusing him in 1991 when he was just 12 years old. The abuse allegedly lasted four years when Bambaataa was in his early 30s.
This isn’t the first time Bambaataa has been hit with allegations of abuse.
Back in 2016, former Democratic Party figure and music exec Ronald Savage accused the Zulu Nation founder of molesting him when he was 15, but earlier this year, Savage recanted, claiming he had lied about his age using a fake ID and that Bambaataa believed the encounter was consensual.
“Bambaataa is not a paedophile,” Savage told AllHipHop. “In my eyes, he was doing something that was consensual with someone that he thought was of age.”
Multiple other men have come forward over the years. At least 12 individuals have accused Bambaataa of sexual misconduct.
Bambaataa has repeatedly denied all allegations.
