DETROIT – Four-time Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles and several other gymnasts are seeking more than $1 billion from the Federal Bureau of Investigation for failing to stop a sports doctor from molesting athletes, The Associated Press is reporting.
According to the news agency, the 25-year-old Biles and Olympic gold medalists Aly Raisman, 28, and McKayla Maroney, 26, are among 90 plaintiffs in the tort claims, California law firm Manly, Stewart & Finaldi said Wednesday.
In July 2015, USA Gymnastics informed FBI agents in Indianapolis of sexual abuse allegations against Larry Nassar, a team doctor who also worked at Michigan State University, according to the AP and The New York Times. Despite that report, the FBI didn’t begin a formal investigation or alert federal or Michigan state authorities, the Justice Department’s inspector general said.
The next year, FBI agents in Los Angeles began to investigate sexual tourism allegations against Nassar, the AP reported. Those agents also failed to notify Michigan authorities of the case, according to the inspector general.
Following an investigation led by Michigan State University police, Nassar was arrested in fall 2016, according to the AP. The state’s Attorney General’s Office ended up handling the assault case, while federal prosecutors in Michigan began a child pornography investigation against Nassar, the news agency reported. Nassar ultimately received multiple decades-long prison sentences.
“If the FBI had simply done its job, Nassar would have been stopped before he ever had the chance to abuse hundreds of girls, including me,” former University of Michigan gymnast Samantha Roy said of the yearlong gap between the allegations against Nassar and his arrest.
The Justice Department announced in May that there wasn’t enough information available to criminally charge two former agents from the Indianapolis field office who failed to act quickly enough, then likely provided “inaccurate or incomplete information” about what happened, the AP reported.
The FBI must respond to the tort claims within six months, according to the AP.
– The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Here are some memorable photos of seven-time Olympic medalist Simone Biles through the years.
2013: Simone Biles (center) of Spring, Texas, on the podium with Kyla Ross (left) of Aliso Viejo, California, and Brenna Dowell of Odessa, Missouri, after winning the All-Round title during the Senior Women Competition at the 2013 P&G Gymnastics Championships at the XL Centre in Hartford, Connecticut, on Aug. 17, 2013.
2014: Simone Biles of the United States performs on the balance beam during the women’s team final on Day 2 of the 45th Artistic Gymnastics World Championships at Guangxi Sports Center Stadium on October 8, 2014, in Nanning, China.
2015: Simone Biles of United States competes on the beam during Day 10 of the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships at the SSE Hydro on November 1, 2015, in Glasgow, Scotland.
2016: Gold medalist Simone Biles of the United States poses for photographs after the medal ceremony for the Women’s Individual All-Around on Day 6 of the 2016 Rio Olympics at Rio Olympic Arena on August 11, 2016, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
2017: Olympic gymnasts Aly Raisman (left) and Simone Biles attend the 2017 ESPYS at Microsoft Theater on July 12, 2017, in Los Angeles.
2018: Simone Biles warms up on the balance beam during Day 2 of the U.S. Gymnastics Championships 2018 at TD Garden on August 17, 2018, in Boston.
2019: Simone Biles of The United States poses for photos with her multiple gold medals during Day 10 of the 49th FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships at Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle on October 13, 2019, in Stuttgart, Germany.
2020: Simone Biles visits the Lower Eastside Girls Club with SK-II at Lower East Side Girls Club on March 3, 2020, in New York City.
2021: Simone Biles of Team United States poses with the bronze medal following the Women’s Balance Beam Final on Day 11 of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Ariake Gymnastics Centre on August 3, 2021, in Tokyo.
United States gymnasts from left, Simone Biles, McKayla Maroney, Aly Raisman and Maggie Nichols, arrive to testify during a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General’s report on the FBI’s handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington.
United States Olympic gymnast Simone Biles testifies during a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General’s report on the FBI’s handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington.
United States Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney testifies during a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General’s report on the FBI’s handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington.
United States Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman testifies during a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General’s report on the FBI’s handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington.
United States gymnast Maggie Nichols testifies during a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General’s report on the FBI’s handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington.
United States gymnasts from left, Aly Raisman, Simone Biles, McKayla Maroney and Maggie Nichols, leave after testifying at a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General’s report on the FBI’s handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington.
United States gymnasts from right, Aly Raisman, Maggie Nichols, McKayla Maroney and Simone Biles testify during a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General’s report on the FBI’s handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington.
United States Olympic gymnast McKayla Maroney is sworn in during a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General’s report on the FBI’s handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington.
United States Olympic gymnast Simone Biles is sworn in during a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General’s report on the FBI’s handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington.
United States gymnasts Aly Raisman, right, and McKayla Maroney embrace after testifying before a Senate Judiciary hearing about the Inspector General’s report on the FBI’s handling of the Larry Nassar investigation on Capitol Hill, Wednesday, Sept. 15, 2021, in Washington.
