NEW YORK, March 9 (UPI) -- A former American Apparel employee says the clothing company's founder kept her prisoner in his New York apartment for hours of sex just after she turned 18.
Irene Morales' lawsuit, filed in state court Tuesday, alleges Dov Charney, who built a T-shirt business into a clothing manufacturer and retail chain, first had sex with her in April 2008 and continued to harass her until last summer when she visited him in Los Angeles and was subjected to "extreme psychological abuse and torment."
Her lawyer, Eric Baum, said Morales continued to work at a Manhattan store for $10.25 an hour because she needed the job and did not report Charney to police because she felt the relationship was her fault, the New York Post reported.
In court papers, Morales said Charney told her when she was only 17 he wanted to have sex with her as soon as she was 18. He then allegedly invited her to his apartment and forced her into a number of sex acts.
Charney has been the target of sexual harassment lawsuits in the past.
The company released a statement saying Morales signed a commitment not to sue when she resigned from her job. It said the lawsuit was likely to be referred to binding arbitration and it expected her charges to be dismissed.
