Aussie Artist Zheani Sparkes Presses Sexual Assault Charges Against Die Antwoord’s ‘Ninja’

zheani sparkes - die antwoord

Australian musician Zheani Sparkes is leading the sexual assault accusations against Die Antwoord after allegedly being raped by Watkin Tudor Jones in 2013, according to The Sydney Morning Herald.

The 26-year-old from Brisbane has filed a police report in Queensland, claiming that Watkin Tudor Jones (Ninja) sexually assaulted her in South Africa, and committed revenge porn offences against her.

She also alleges that the frontman groomed her before “trafficking” her to South Africa, amongst other claims of ritualistic torture and intimidation, according to Music Feeds.

Since Zheani’s allegations surfaced, an Italian musician has come forward with similar allegations dating back to 2014.  ‘Ninja’ has denied the allegations from both Zheani and the other accuser.

This isn’t the first time the rap-rave duo from South Africa have come under fire for their allegedly questionable actions. Watkin Tudor Jones and band mate and ex-girlfriend Yolandi Visser were kicked off a number of recent festival lineups after footage of them allegedly being racist and homophobic surfaced.

The allegations from Sparkes began in June 2013 when Yolandi Visser commented on the then 19-year-old fan’s Instagram.

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Sparkes then allegedly communicated with the pair over email on numerous occasions.

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She describes the attention from the pair as “overwhelming”, with at least half a dozen emails from Jones within a 24 hour period.

“He referred to Yolandi as his little sister, basically disassociated their relationship,” Sparkes said of Visser. “Within the next couple of days, correspondence became more intense. I was receiving up to six emails from him per day and I would reply twice. I was quite overwhelmed.”

Sparkes also claims that she received unsolicited nudes from Watkin Tudor Jones, which she alleges is an abuse of his power over a fan.

“There was this power imbalance. It all seemed too surreal to grasp what was happening so I was very much in the moment and trying to come off like a cool person.”

However, that wasn’t the worst of the allegations. Sparkes recalls their phone conversations becoming more personal and regular before Jones allegedly started making more romantic moves towards her.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald, the situation then escalated again when Sparkes had her drink allegedly spiked, which prompted Jones to organise for her to travel to Africa while she was under the influence. She refers to this incident as being “trafficked” by the duo.

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The allegations climax when Sparkes was in Africa visiting Jones, when she accuses him of raping her among other allegations.

“I was just in shock. I wouldn’t discuss it,” she said. “I might be young, naive, dumb, but I knew what had just happened but I didn’t know how to address it and I didn’t feel safe to address it.”

In her song ‘The Question’, Zheani details her allegations with a DIY music video with screenshots and “receipts” of the alleged assaults that she uploaded to YouTube in March.

“All I wanted was to move on with my life and leave their shit behind,” the clip’s description reads. “I wanted to draw the line and finally speak the truth and stand up for myself. I can see through you people and I am no longer afraid of you.”

Sparkes also alleges that Jones and his bandmate Yolandi Visser are complicit in sharing revenge porn of her, which is a crime under Australian law.

Watkin Tudor Jones’ publicist has released a statement denying Sparkes’ allegations against him.

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