Soccer agent Jonathan Barnett is under criminal investigation in London after being accused of rape, torture and trafficking, U.S. court documents have confirmed.
A civil complaint was made against Barnett, 75, in a California district court by a woman referred to only as Jane Doe in July. The complaint claims that Barnett raped the woman more than 39 times after she was “trafficked” from Australia, of which she is a citizen, to the United Kingdom in 2017.
The lawsuit says the Briton then “tortured” her over a six-year period until 2023 while keeping her as a “sex slave”. Barnett denies the allegations.
In documents filed in the Central District Court in California, dated November 17, Barnett’s lawyers have confirmed the alleged victim has filed criminal charges against Barnett in London and the investigation is ongoing.
“Following the termination of the relationship, in 2024, Plaintiff filed a criminal charge against Barnett in London, England (the investigation of which charge is currently pending),” the document reads.
Barnett’s lawyers have filed a declaration in an attempt to get the civil complaint against the agent in the U.S. dismissed as they claim any contact between Barnett and the woman was in the UK.
The documents from Barnett’s lawyers state that from June 2017 until September 2021, the woman and Barnett were involved in a “consensual personal relationship”. Barnett admitted to paying the woman more than £1,000,000 following the end of the relationship.
“When my relationship with plaintiff ended in or around September 2021, she threatened to publicly disclose the relationship unless I paid her significant sums of money,” Barnett says in a statement. “As a result of those threats, I paid plaintiff for a number of years, ultimately paying her well in excess of £1,000,000.”
A statement from the Metropolitan Police from earlier this year read: “On Saturday, 29 March, at approximately 10:52hrs, a 75-year-old man was arrested when his flight landed at Heathrow Airport.
“He was arrested on suspicion of rape and causing grievous bodily harm.
“He has been released on bail. Enquiries into the circumstances continue.”
Barnett’s former employer, Creative Artists Agency (CAA), is also named in the U.S. lawsuit.
A CAA Spokesperson told The Athletic in July: “While the complaint attempts to connect these allegations to CAA’s business, Ms. Doe has never been an employee, consultant, or contractor of CAA, ICM, or Stellar, nor has she ever had any business connection to CAA, ICM, or Stellar. Mr. Barnett exited Stellar in February 2024.”
Barnett enjoyed a successful career in soccer as one of the highest-profile agents in the sport before retiring last year. He founded the Stellar Group before it was purchased by ICM Partners and later taken over by CAA, and helped broker Gareth Bale’s then world-record transfer from Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid in 2013.
He also represented players such as Jack Grealish, Jordan Pickford and Ashley Cole, while one of Barnett’s first clients outside of football was legendary West Indian cricketer Brian Lara.