Tag: accused

Content warning: This story contains graphic descriptions that may not be suitable for some readers.

Ravens kicker Justin Tucker engaged in inappropriate behavior at four high-end spas and wellness centers in the Baltimore region, according to six massage therapists, including exposing his genitals, brushing two of them with his exposed penis, and leaving what they believed to be ejaculate on the massage table after three of his treatments.

Several therapists said Tucker’s behavior was so egregious that they ended his sessions early or refused to work on him again. And, at two spas, management said they banned him from returning.

After receiving a tip on Jan. 9, The Banner began investigating and spoke to six massage therapists who recounted troubling firsthand experiences with Tucker from 2012 to 2016. The women said they had long wanted to tell their stories.

“I’ve told people about this over the years, and they either act like it’s hot goss[ip] or a joke,” said one therapist who worked on Tucker in 2016. “But it was really degrading.”

Attorneys for Tucker denied the allegations of inappropriate behavior, calling them speculative and “impossible to prove.” The attorneys, Thomas A. Clare and Steven J. Harrison of the firm Clare Locke, said Tucker had never been banned from the two spas in question.

They also denied Tucker ever ejaculated at a spa.

“Mr. Tucker has never behaved inappropriately during any massage therapy session, and certainly never in the manner described” by The Banner’s reporting, the lawyers said. “Any suggestion to the contrary is a fictitious and utterly baseless claim.”

The Ravens declined to comment, as did the NFL.

Some of the women said they encountered Tucker, now 35, early in his career, before he had established himself as the NFL’s best kicker. After joining the team in 2012, Tucker quickly built a standout reputation on the field, kicking two fourth-quarter field goals in the Ravens’ 34-31 win over the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII.

He cultivated an outsized public persona, extolling his Catholic faith, filling the Baltimore Basilica with his classically trained bass-baritone and staging a dramatic proposal to his now-wife on the roof of the Four Seasons. He’s been the spokesman for the Royal Farms convenience store chain since 2015, making him one of Baltimore’s most recognizable athletes.

Most of the six women who shared firsthand accounts said they had not known each other before being contacted by The Banner. Yet they gave strikingly similar accounts of Tucker’s behavior. The women asked to be identified by a letter to protect their privacy, fearing retaliation from the Ravens organization or fans.

Five of the women said Tucker asked them to massage his pelvic region or inner thighs while he had an erection. Then they said he repeatedly wiggled his pelvis to remove the sheets, which fully or partially exposed his genitals. Two women said Tucker brushed them with his exposed penis. Three said, when they returned to the treatment room after Tucker left, they discovered a large wet spot on the massage table, which they strongly believed to be ejaculate.

The women say the incidents took place from 2012 — Tucker’s rookie season with the Ravens — to 2016, a year after he married his college sweetheart.

A representative of the upscale local spa chain Ojas said Tucker was “immediately terminated as a client” in 2014 after “a massage therapist reported an incident that allegedly occurred during a massage therapy session with Justin Tucker.”

The owners of the now-closed Studio 921 in Locust Point said through an attorney that they “took immediate and decisive action to ban this individual from our business and services to ensure a safe environment for all.” A lawyer for the spa said the owner told Tucker by phone that he could not return.

The massage therapists, many of whom were in their early 20s at the time, described the mix of emotions they felt in treating Tucker, a high-profile professional football star whom the spas were proud to book. At Ojas in Pikesville, which was patronized by many members of the Ravens, the staff at times wore T-shirts that said, “Purple and black, we’ve got your back,” massage therapists said.

Several of the women reported that Tucker’s improper actions began slowly and subtly. But, after he repeatedly attempted to expose his genitals and, in some cases, seemingly positioned his hand to brush their thighs with his fingers, they concluded he was deliberately being inappropriate.

“We can tell if it’s intentional or just an accident, and this was intentional,” said L., a therapist who said Tucker touched her wrist with his naked and semi-erect penis during a massage at an Ojas location.

The women said they took extra steps to keep Tucker covered after he repeatedly exposed himself. One said she placed a heavy heating pad over his pelvis. Another described using one hand to keep him covered with the sheets while pressing his inner thighs with her other arm to make the massage less sensual.

Tucker’s lawyers said it is “unremarkable” and “not news” that he might become exposed during a massage. Athletes often shift around due to the discomfort that accompanies body work, and massage therapists themselves are the ones who adjust coverings, they said.

But the therapists were unequivocal in their belief that Tucker’s behavior was unusual, inappropriate and intentional.

Roughly a decade after the alleged incidents, the therapists say they remain haunted by his actions.

“I can’t watch sports anymore. I see his face everywhere,” said J., who said Tucker acted inappropriately when she massaged him at Apothecary Wellness.

After talking to The Banner, E. contacted attorney Michael Belsky, a partner at the SBWD Law Firm, who specializes in sexual abuse and harassment cases. Belsky said he is now representing four massage therapists who have shared similar experiences about Tucker, including an additional therapist who has not spoken to The Banner.

“The allegations of exploitation that have come from my clients are voluminous, very similar and very troubling,” said Belsky, adding that massage therapists are highly trained, licensed professionals. “Each of my clients has expressed profound, long-lasting impact as a result of these allegations.”

None of the women who spoke to the Banner said they took their allegations to law enforcement. Legal experts said there were some criminal statutes that might have applied if the allegations were proven true – indecent exposure, and possibly battery, for any instance in which his genitals intentionally touched a therapist – but that the statute of limitations has expired and, in any event, such cases are rarely prosecuted. One expert said any civil court case — such as a claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress — against Tucker could face a very high bar for success.

Depending on the outcome of any investigation, Tucker could be found in violation of NFL and team rules. The league’s personal conduct policy prohibits behavior that “undermines or puts at risk the integrity of the NFL.” And in 2022, Ravens coach John Harbaugh cited the team’s “zero-tolerance policy” toward domestic violence when asked about Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson’s suspension following accusations of sexual misconduct.

At the Pikesville branch of Ojas, both E. and L. were assigned to massage Tucker in 2014.

E. was 21, a newly licensed massage therapist and about seven months pregnant. She said, before the massage began, Tucker asked her to focus on his inner thigh muscles because they were tight from kicking. She left the room to allow him to undress and get under the sheets.

When she returned, Tucker had an erection, she said. Since it’s not unusual for a man to briefly become erect during a massage, she said she ignored it and focused on his neck and shoulders.

Following standard protocol, she tightly wrapped the sheets around his genital area, a technique called a “diaper drape,” she said. But Tucker wriggled his pelvis until the sheets fell away, revealing his genitals, she said.

“He was continuously moving his hips,” she said. “Moving his penis, wiggling it, making it bounce, undoing the drapes.”

Flustered, E. asked Tucker to turn onto his stomach so she could work on his back, she said. But, as the end of the appointment neared, he asked her to return to his inner thighs, she said.

Tucker was still erect, E. said, which she found discomfiting. She again secured him in the sheet and stared at the wall while massaging his thighs, she said. When she looked down a few minutes later, she recalled, the sheets were gone and he was fully exposed.

Feeling certain that this was not an accident, E. ended the massage, left the room and told a supervisor, she recalled. Four other former Ojas employees confirmed to The Banner that she told them this account around the time of the incident.

“It felt premeditated,” E. said. “It made me feel even more gross because I was pregnant.”

Another therapist, L., said she was also assigned to massage Tucker later in 2014 at the same spa and encountered similar behavior: Tucker asked her to focus above the groin area and wiggled his body to make the sheet fall away, she said.

“Throughout the whole session, he kept readjusting to make his penis come out,” she said. L. said that Tucker appeared to purposely position his hand so that it touched her leg.

Toward the end of the appointment, Tucker readjusted the sheets so that his penis came out and touched her arm, L. said. At that point, she said she ended the session early.

L. said she informed her supervisor that she did not want to work on Tucker ever again. The Banner was unable to contact the supervisor, but four other former Ojas employees informed The Banner that L. had told them about the incident at the time.

At a third spa, the now-closed The Healing Path location in Lutherville, Tucker ground his pelvis into the massage table when lying face down, then repeatedly tried to expose his genitals when face up, according to R., a massage therapist who worked on him there in 2016.

“He continued to move the draping, so I realized he was being creepy,” R. said.

Because Tucker was a celebrity, R. said, she was afraid to end the massage early. Instead, she switched techniques and used one hand to pull the sheets taut and pin him to the bed while she massaged his thighs with her forearm, she said.

The owner of The Healing Path declined to comment, saying the business was a healthcare facility and must follow the same privacy guidelines that govern doctors and hospitals.

Two therapists reported that Tucker also acted inappropriately with them at Apothecary Wellness in 2012 and 2013, during his first two seasons with the Ravens.

One of the therapists, J., recalled that Tucker arrived at his appointment in Ravens gear from head to toe. “He made it a point to tell me, ‘I’m a kicker. I play for the Ravens,’” she recalled.

Tucker asked J. to focus on his gluteal muscles and inner thighs but kept moving to expose himself, she said. “I tucked him in like a baby, but he kept repositioning himself so I would brush against” his exposed penis, she said, prompting her to stop massaging his thighs and move to a different area of his body.

“That is not normal massage behavior,” she said. ”I did hundreds of massages and I never ever had someone else do that.”

After the massage, J. said, she found a “huge wet spot” that she believed to be ejaculate in the middle of the massage table where his pelvis had been.

J. said she told the receptionist and senior staff members that she never wanted to massage Tucker again. She said that outside of what she believes occurred with Tucker, she has never had another client leave what appeared to be ejaculate on the massage table.

“I left the massage feeling dirty,” she said, noting that she was so upset by the experience that she stopped doing massages for several months. “He knows we have no power and can’t do anything.”

Tucker’s attorneys said that having bodywork performed on an NFL kicker’s thighs was typical, and not “sensual.”

They added that there were “myriad explanations for why a massage table would appear damp,” suggesting it could have been sweat or body oil, and that the therapist’s observation of ejaculate was a “wild and inherently improbable conclusion.”

“It was semen. I know what semen looks like,” J. responded. “I have dated men.”

S., who worked at Apothecary, said Tucker acted appropriately during his first appointment with her. However, after Tucker’s second appointment, S. said, she returned to the room to discover what appeared to be ejaculate on the center of the massage table where his pelvis had been.

“I know what it [ejaculate] looks like compared to just water,” she said. “There was a puddle.”

S. said she showed her supervisor and requested that Tucker be barred from further appointments with her. He called several times asking to receive a massage from S., but the front desk staff always said she was fully booked and he eventually stopped calling, she said.

One of Apothecary’s co-owners at the time recalled being informed of S.’s account. She said Tucker was never confronted about the concerns. Instead, the owner said, Tucker was referred to another therapist and he eventually stopped patronizing the business. She said she did not recall J.’s account.

Several years later, N., another therapist, said she provided a massage to Tucker at Studio 921. N., who was more experienced and thought she could keep him in line, said she volunteered to work on Tucker after a colleague in her early 20s told her she was no longer comfortable with him.

N. recalled she started the massage by informing Tucker that his wife was a client of hers, hoping that would be a hint to behave appropriately. Yet Tucker repeatedly exposed himself and brushed her thighs with his hands, she said.

“I’ve had clients have inadvertent accidental erections which is normal,” she said. “Trying to uncover and show it to someone is not OK and not normal.”

She ended the massage and hurried out of the room when she thought he appeared to be having an orgasm, she recalled.

After Tucker had left, she discovered a “wet and sticky” puddle of what she believed to be ejaculate on the top sheet, she said.

“It was so hard for me to deal with afterwards,“ said N, referring to the emotional toll of the incident.

Tucker was banned from the spa and told by phone that he could not return, an attorney told The Banner.

Tucker’s attorneys denied that he was banned from either spa, claiming neither establishment informed him that he could not return. They sent a screenshot of an undated photo of Tucker posing with Studio 921 staff that appeared to be posted by the spa on the website TripAdvisor in December 2016, after the alleged ban. They also provided copies of an email from 2018 that they say showed the spa “was actively inviting him back for additional appointments.”

“This, of course, is entirely inconsistent with the (false) idea that he was ‘banned’ from the spa,” the attorneys said.

The body of the email was addressed to “Hi #921Fam,” and advertised a holiday special.

The spa’s attorney said he was uncertain why the TripAdvisor photo was posted but said Tucker was unequivocally told he was banned and did not return to the spa.

Tucker’s lawyers directed The Banner to more than a dozen therapists who had worked with the kicker, including three men. For six of them, the attorneys provided first names and insisted The Banner go through the Ravens for interviews, a request the team declined. The Banner reached out to 11 therapists. Four responded, all describing positive experiences with Tucker.

Martina Duncan, who said she was contracted by the Ravens and recalled working with Tucker twice a week from 2016 to 2019, described him as professional and respectful throughout their sessions.

“I always found the relationship with him to be professional and platonic,” Duncan said. “The boundaries always stayed really clear as a client and therapist. …. Whoever is making these allegations is beyond what I’ve ever experienced.”

Duncan now runs her own massage business, where she features a testimonial from Tucker on her website.

D’Lena Young, who said she worked with Tucker under contract with the Ravens for the past two years, described their interactions as professional. She said their conversations during sessions often touched on his wife and child, and she found him “very professional, very honorable, very upstanding, and very loyal to his family.”

Nathan Nordstrom, a national massage therapy educator and franchise consultant, said the industry lacks comprehensive national- or state-level mechanisms to address inappropriate behavior.

“We should not have to deal with someone thinking that massage therapy is a lewd sexual practice,” Nordstrom said.

Therapists who experience sexually inappropriate behavior often have limited options for recourse, said Kimberly Alexander, president of the Alliance for Massage Therapy Education. Law enforcement officials frequently decline to pursue charges because such instances do not always rise to the level of a crime, she said.

If the allegations involve a well-known athlete, Alexander added, therapists’ reluctance to come forward is even greater. When massage therapists accused Watson, another NFL star, of sexual misconduct during bodywork sessions in 2021, they faced widespread condemnation from fans and even death threats. (Watson was ultimately suspended for 11 games, but only after receiving the largest guaranteed contract in NFL history.)

Therapists who speak out against famous clients are “worried about their career,” Alexander said. “They’re worried about their license; they’re worried about their reputation in the community; they’re worried about their family’s response to it.”

The massage therapists who shared their stories with The Banner said they hoped Tucker would be held accountable for his actions.

“I want something to be done,” L. said. “The only reason that nothing’s being done so far is because it’s Justin Tucker.”

Baltimore Banner reporters Giana Han, Jonas Shaffer and John-John Williams IV contributed to this report.