Kevin Clash's accuser, Sheldon
Stephens, is reportedly attempting to undo a settlement in which he
recanted underage sexual allegations.
According to celebrity website TMZ.com,
the media outlet which broke the story, Stephens has met with lawyers
in Los Angeles to discuss the matter.
TMZ.com
reported that Clash, the puppeteer and voice of Sesame Street's
Elmo, negotiated a settlement in which Stephens, an aspiring
model/actor with a troubled past, was paid $125,000 on the condition
that he withdraw allegations that he and Clash had a sexual
relationship when Stephens, now 24, was 16 years old and state that
they shared an “adult consensual relationship.”
Stephens recanted the story last
Tuesday, a day after TMZ.com first reported his claims.
Stephens reportedly has told lawyers
that he is prepared to forfeit the $125,000 and was opposed to the
deal all along. He said he was pressured into signing the
settlement.
According to The
Smoking Gun, Stephens' past includes multiple arrests, the most
serious of which took place in 2009 when he was accused of stealing
$250,000 worth of jewelry from Los Angeles music manager Darian
Pollard. Police arrested Stephens in the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
airport wearing a white gold necklace and a ring. Stephens told cops
the jewelry was a gift. Pollard told police that he was robbed at
knifepoint. The charges were eventually dismissed, and a friend
called the incident a simple “misunderstanding.”
The The
New York Times reported that Clash had not previously
publicly acknowledged that he is gay.