Iconic soul singer Smokey Robinson, who was accused of sexually assaulting four former housekeepers for years in a lawsuit filed earlier this month, is under criminal investigation, a law enforcement official said Thursday.
A spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said the investigation is in its early stages and declined further comment.
Lawyers for the plaintiffs said the investigation, first reported by TMZ, is linked to the lawsuit.
“Our clients intend to fully cooperate with LASD’s ongoing investigation in the pursuit of seeking justice for themselves and others that may have been similarly assaulted by him,” John Harris and Herbert Hayden said in a statement.
An attorney for Robinson, whose real name is William Robinson Jr., denied the allegations in the lawsuit, calling them “vile” and “false” and accused the plaintiffs’ lawyers of “trying to enlist the public as an unwitting participant in the media circus they are trying to create.”
The attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.
Robinson’s wife, Frances Robinson, is also named as a defendant in the suit and was accused of perpetuating a hostile work environment.
The suit, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, is seeking $50 million in damages and identifies the plaintiffs as former housekeepers. One of the women alleges that she was sexually assaulted at least 23 times between 2014 and 2020, according to the suit.
Another plaintiff said she was assaulted at least 20 times during the 12 years she worked for Robinson, a pioneering Motown artist who was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.
Harris said the women, identified as Jane Does 1-4 in the suit, were low-wage workers who did not previously come forward because they feared reprisal and public embarrassment.
Three of the women also said they were concerned about possible adverse effects on their immigration status, according to the suit.
