Bill Cosby is being accused of raping a woman who has labelled him a "monster".
Artist and former actress Barbara Bowman said that 77-year-old The Cosby Show actor sexually assaulted her when she was a teenager, The Independent reported.
She alleged he used his position of power as a way of coercing and manipulating her in the early stages of her career.
"I was drugged and raped by that man," Bowman, 47, told the Daily Mail.
"He is a monster. He came at me like a monster. My hope is that others who have experienced sexual abuse will not be intimidated into silence by the famous, rich and powerful. If I can help one victim, then I've done my job."
Bowman said she met Cosby through her agent when she was 17, working as model and studying acting. She claimed he served as her mentor, and encouraged her to think of him as a father figure.
She admitted being scared of him, but at the same time had strong desires to "make my way up the ladder".
"I knew something was wrong, that this was a twisted situation, but if I resisted, I was failing him and failing my good fortune. He was a pot of gold and I needed to take good care of it."
She said she was finally revealing her full story in the hope others would learn to read the tell-tale signs of abuse.
"No one believed me for years. They said Bill would never do that. That it was preposterous. But I'm putting my name out there and standing behind these words, just like Burress. No more code of silence."
Sexual abuse allegations first came out against Cosby in 2004. He has strongly denied previous accusations, which his attorney described as "preposterous" and "bizarre".
Other alleged victims were said to have been given hush money to prevent them from going public, and another settled after filing a court case against Cosby.
SOURCE: Stuff.co.nz
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