‘There’s only one way to settle this: under oath. In front of a judge, in front of a jury, anytime you want’
Sum 41’s Deryck Whibley is issuing a challenge to Greig Nori after the Treble Charger frontman denied the singer’s claims that he sexually abused him.
In his new memoir, Whibley, 44, alleges that Nori, 61, pressured him to be in a sexual relationship when he was underage.
The relationship took a turn he says when Nori, who produced Sum 41’s Does This Look Infected? and Chuck, “passionately” kissed him at a rave.
After the incident, Whibley declared that Nori said they should pursue a relationship because “so many of my rock star idols were queer… Most people are bisexual; they’re just too afraid to admit it.”
Nori denied the implications in a statement shared with Postmedia saying that when they began a romantic relationship “Whibley was an adult, as was I.”
“The accusation that I initiated the relationship is false. I did not initiate it. Whibley initiated it, aggressively,” Nori wrote in response. “The accusation that I ‘groomed’ Whibley prior to the beginning of the relationship is false. I was surprised when Whibley initiated it.”
In his statement to Postmedia, Nori went on to say that he was “shocked” Whibley publicly accused him of abuse “without giving me any opportunity to respond to (the allegations).”
He also hit out at the number of outlets that published Whibely’s allegations “without verifying them.”
“They have done so without giving me a reasonable opportunity to respond, which I requested,” Nori wrote.
But after Nori’s rebuttal, Whibely told fans he’s standing by his accusations and challenged his onetime associate to settle the matter in court.
Whibley continued, saying, “I’m not a liar, and I’m going to speak to you directly, Greig Nori. If you think I’m a liar, there’s only one way to settle this: under oath. In front of a judge, in front of a jury, anytime you want. I’m ready whenever you are.”
“He told me this was all my fault to begin with because I should never have said yes to it in the first place. I started this and now he was in it with me so I couldn’t just stop,” Whibley writes.
Their sexual encounters ended, Whibley says, when a mutual friend, who categorized their relationship as abusive, discovered what was happening.
Whibley says it wasn’t until he was in his mid-30s, long after they had fired Nori as their manager, that he realized that the power dynamic that existed between the two was wrong.
But Nori denied coercing Whibley to remain in the relationship. “The accusation that I pressured Whibley to continue the relationship by accusing him of homophobia is false,” Nori said.
Whibley ended his video message to fans, which he captioned, “So, I guess it has come to this…,” by thanking his followers for their “love and support.”
“We’ll get through this like we get through everything else.”
Postmedia has reached out to Nori for comment on Whibley’s latest challenge.