Coca-Cola heir Alki David fined $900 million for sexual assault
Alki David, the heir to a Coca-Cola bottling fortune, has been ordered by a Los Angeles court to pay $900 million in damages to a former female employee. The ruling comes after the former employee, known as Jane Doe in court documents, accused the Greek billionaire of sexual assault over a three-year period. "It's so despicable, the facts of this case. He raped my client while on trial in another case," said attorney Gary Dordick to the Los Angeles Times.
Allegations of hostile work environment and assault
The abuse allegedly began in February 2016 when Doe was employed as a model for several of David's companies, including Hologram USA. The lawsuit alleges that David first attempted to kiss Doe during a work trip on his private island in Greece, but she refused and he apologized. She was laid off the same year and did not speak to David again until 2018, when he invited her back to rejoin his team at his cannabis manufacturing company, Swiss-X.
Continued abuse and escalation of assault
Upon accepting the job, David invited her to his hotel room, where he allegedly forced her into a sexual act under the guise of sampling a CBD product. The abuse escalated in 2019 when David allegedly raped her during a business meeting with his Doberman Pinscher present. Doe's lawyers described the office environment as "alarmingly hostile," with a room referred to as "The Rape Room" and a pornographic image labeled "HER-ASS" displayed on the human resources department door.
Previous allegations and verdicts against David
At the time of the alleged rape, David was already on trial for another sexual assault case where he was accused of thrusting his pelvis into a different employee's face. He was ordered to pay $58 million to that victim, marking the third ruling against him in 2019 alone. Other employees have also claimed that David had tried to force himself upon them or fired them for refusing his sexual advances.
