Smokey Robinson is facing fresh allegations as two more former domestic employees have come forward with claims of sexual battery—one of them a male staffer who alleges he was abused while working as a car-detailing valet for the Motown icon.
The new accusations were disclosed in a motion filed in Los Angeles by four former housekeepers who, in May, launched a $50 million (£38 million) lawsuit against the 85-year-old singer. In the motion, obtained by Rolling Stone, the plaintiffs seek permission to add the male accuser—identified as John Doe—and a fifth woman, Jane Doe 5, as co-plaintiffs in an amended complaint. A hearing on the motion is scheduled for 6 January.
Robinson’s attorney, Christopher Frost, dismissed the new claims, alleging that the accusers are “part of the same group of people who have conspired together against the Robinsons and are laying out their claims for maximum adverse publicity.” He described the allegations as an “organised, avaricious campaign to extract money from an 85-year-old legend.”
The original suit, filed on 6 May, alleges that Robinson isolated the housekeepers at his properties in the San Fernando Valley and Las Vegas, compelling them into unwanted sexual contact despite their objections. According to the latest filing, the proposed Jane Doe 5 accuser claims she experienced similar harassment and sexual battery between 2007 and 2011 while employed as a housekeeper.
Smokey Robinson and his wife—named as a co-defendant—have countersued, filing a $500 million (£382 million) defamation and elder abuse cross-complaint against the initial four plaintiffs.
The case is currently slated to go to trial on 11 October 2027.
