The Security and Exchange Commission announced Friday that WWE co-founder Vince McMahon will pay out more than $1.7 million for failing to disclose to the wrestling company’s board settlements related to sexual assault allegations. McMahon’s circumvention of the WWE’s internal accounting controls caused errors on the company’s 2018 and 2021 financial statements, the SEC said. He will pay a $400,000 civil penalty and reimburse the WWE $1.3 million. The SEC alleged that McMahon paid a female WWE employee $3 million and a female independent contractor $7.5 million not to file sexual assault charges against him. In January 2024, McMahon stepped down as executive chairman of WWE’s parent company after he and the WWE were accused of sex trafficking and abuse by a former employee. His departure from the company was after years of sexual abuse allegations within the company. In 2022, a Wall Street Journal report found that McMahon paid $12 million over the past 16 years to silence his accusers. McMahon has denied wrongdoing and said in a statement Friday that he is “thrilled that I can now put all this behind me.”
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