“I assure you of my full cooperation with the Special Committee’s inquiry and will do all I can to support the inquiry,” McMahon said in a statement. “I promise to accept whatever the findings and conclusions of the investigation are.”
The investigation is said to have begun in April, and the Journal reports that “other, old undisclosed agreements have been found that include claims by former female WWE staff for Mr McMahon’s misconduct.” Other misconduct allegations were reportedly made against John Lorinitis, the company’s head of talent relations.
WWE said Friday it “takes all allegations of misconduct very seriously” and has engaged independent legal services to assist in the review. The third party “will conduct a comprehensive review of the company’s compliance plan, human resource performance and overall culture.”
The company’s team is made up of executives reporting to McMahon and McMahon’s own family members. It features Stephanie McMahon and Paul Lewesk, her husband and former wrestler Triple H. Vince McMahon controls the majority vote.
The CEO helped transform the company into a media powerhouse that currently has agreements with Fox and NBCUniversal. McMahon has also helped create many famous wrestlers such as The Rock, John Cena and Stone Gold Steve Austin, who have become bigger than WWE.
Shares of WWE have risen more than 30% to date, a departure from the current bear market.
– Frank Bolota of CNN Business contributed to this report.
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