Despite multiple sexual assault allegations, chef Mario Batali will reportedly not be charged in any of them.
Inconclusive evidence or witness testimony were cited as the reason. “The police declined to refer the cases for criminal prosecution after the women were unable to recall certain information to support their accusations,” ABC7 sources said.
Meanwhile, The Daily Beast reported that of the four cases against Batali investigated by NYPD, only one was within the statute of limitations.
The allegations include one woman’s story of Batali raping her inside his popular restaurant, Babbo, in 2004. Although Batali denied this and other allegations, he still issued an apology. “I have made many mistakes and I am so very sorry that I have disappointed my friends, my family, my fans, and my team,” the chef wrote last year. “My behavior was wrong and there are no excuses. I take full responsibility.”
He has also stepped down from the Batali & Bastianich Hospitality Group, which managed several Manhattan restaurants, and is reportedly in the process of buying out Batali. The group, now called B&B Hospitality, has yet to release a statement regarding this most recent news.
[Refinery29]
Photo by Brent N. Clarke, courtesy of Inquirer.net
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