Anand Jon was obsessed with underage models, alleges ex-aide

Anand Jon, the United States-based Indian fashion designer, is in deeper trouble with one of his former personal assistants revealing that Jon was“obsessed with underage models.”

The charge by Juan Mendez, who was Jon’s personal assistant for two months in 2005, comes even as the celebrity fashion designer is facing a total of 32 criminal charges, including sexual battery, committing a lewd act on a child, and contributing to the delinquency of a minor by giving her alcohol.

The alleged victims are aged between 14 years and 23 years, and are all linked to the fashion industry.

The New York Post newspaper quoted Mendez as saying at the Dolce & Gabbana jewellery show recently that though he was “appalled” by the rape charges, he “wasn’t surprised.” Mendez continued: “Anand seemed like a decent guy. Sometimes I did question what was going on behind closed doors. I never saw any girl come back crying. When I heard the initial rape accusations, I was appalled but not surprised.”

Mendez said that though he had believed that the first girl, who accused Jon of raping her, to be telling a ‘story’, it had been rather hard to ignore when there were 20 kids also saying the same thing.

“There were situations where alcohol was involved with minors. I figured because of that, a girl could always speculate about what had happened afterward and fabricate a story. Then it could easily happen that one girl could build on the story of another. But then it was 5, 10, 20 kids coming forward,” Mendez added.

Jon, who has been slapped with 32 charges of sexual assault, was first arrested on charges of “rape” and “forcible copulation” on March 6, 2007. He is due to appear in a Beverly Hills court on August 28, 2007.

Jon has pleaded “not guilty” to all 32 counts of sexual assault. With more and more young girls stepping into the world of glitz and glamour, the incident has once again raised the old questions about young models being subjected to harassment and sexual exploitation.

Though there have been a host of controversies surrounding the world of fashion designing and catwalk, the recent charges of sexual assault against Anand Jon has provoked huge disgust and dismay in the fashion industry.
 

Do type in your comments below!