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New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Wednesday that CBS Corp. and its former CEO, Leslie “Les” Moonves, have agreed to pay a total of $30.5 million over allegations of insider trading, misleading investors and allegedly trying to hide sexual assault allegations against Mr. Moonves.
The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) said in a press release that its investigation found that CBS leadership was aware of the sexual assault allegations against Moonves but intentionally hid the allegations for months before they became public.
NY Attorney General Letitia James speaks during a news conference at the Attorney General’s office on September 21, 2022 in New York, New York. James’ office announced Wednesday that it has received more than $30 million from CBS and former CEO Les Moonv (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images/Getty Images)
The OAG said it received text messages between a Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) captain, Moonves, and another CBS executive, showing that the captain “shared confidential information and collaborated with CBS executives” to to keep the allegations secret.
James’ office also said the investigation found that another senior CBS executive dumped millions of dollars worth of CBS stock in the weeks before the allegations against Moonves came to light.
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Under the terms of the agreement reached with the OAG, CBS will pay $28 million and Moonves will pay $2.5 million. The OAG said CBS shareholders would receive $24.5 million of the settlement and $6 million would go toward strengthening “mechanisms for reporting and investigating complaints of sexual harassment and assault.”
ViacomCBS headquarters is pictured in New York, New York, the United States, on December 5, 2019. (Portal/Kate Munsch/File Photo / Portal Photos)
“The attempts by CBS and Leslie Moonves to silence victims, lie to the public and mislead investors can only be described as reprehensible,” James said in a statement. “As a public company, CBS has failed in its most fundamental duty to be honest and transparent with the public and investors. After trying to bury the truth to protect their assets, CBS and Leslie Moonves are now paying millions of dollars for their wrongdoing.”
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Moonves resigned from CBS in 2018 after allegations of sexual misconduct against him by multiple women were published in articles by The New Yorker and The New York Times.
Investors claim that CBS shares have fallen about 10% as a result.
Leslie “Les” Moonves, then President and Chief Executive Officer of CBS Corp., listens to a Bloomberg Television interview on Wednesday, October 14, 2015 in New York, United States. (Photographer: Chris Goodney/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
Moonves was denied his $120 million severance payment by the CBS board of directors, who determined at the time “that there are causes of termination for good cause, including his willful and material misconduct, violation of company policies, and breach of his employment contract, as well as his willful.” Failure to fully cooperate with the company’s investigation.”
The following year, CBS merged with sister company Viacom Inc. to form ViacomCBS and changed its name to Paramount Global in February 2022.
| ticker | security | Last | change | change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PARAGRAPH | WORLDWIDE OUTSTANDING | 16.79 | -2.38 | -12.42% |
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Moonves has previously denied any wrongdoing and has said their sexual encounters were consensual.
Nicole Darrah of FOX News and Portal contributed to this report.