Former teen pop star Melissa Schuman took to her personal blog on Tuesday and accused Backstreet Boys member Nick Carter of raping her in 2002.
As a member of the group Dream, Schuman was 18-year-old at the time and the two worked together on the made-for-TV movie The Hollow.
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The two first met when both of their reps set up a phone call between the two in hopes of sparking a relationship.
“My label reps sat in on the call, anticipating a spark between the two of us,” Schuman said. “I was already dating someone steadily at the time. I was transparent with my then boyfriend about the call and assured him I had no interest but needed to at least accept his call out of respect and courtesy to my label.”
“I took the phone call,” Schuman said. “He was very polite and the conversation was quick.”
Carter invited her and a friend to his Santa Monica apartment for a “casual hangout” while shooting the movie.
“We all took a shot and proceeded to the living room to play some video games,” Schuman said. “This wasn’t a crazy house party, just a casual hangout. We were laughing, talking, nothing out of the norm.”
Later in the evening, he allegedly led her into an office room, played some of the music he was working on and the two began to make out.
“After kissing for a moment, he took my hand and brought me into the bathroom adjacent to his office,” Schuman said. “He shut the door and we continued to kiss. I asked him what we were doing in there. He didn’t respond and continued to kiss me. He then picked me up, put me on the bathroom counter and started to unbutton my pants. I told him I didn’t want to go any further. He didn’t listen. He didn’t care.”
Schuman proceeded to go into graphic detail of how Carter allegedly forced her into oral sex in the bathroom, then took her into a bedroom where he forced himself on her.
Schuman said she chose to remain silent, even when friends and family advised her to come forward publicly with her story. Her mind was finally changed when she read Carter was accused of raping a fan at a house party, only to see people in the comment section attempt to discredit the victim.
“I feel I have an obligation now to come forward with the hope and intention to inspire and encourage other victims to tell their story,” Schuman said. “We are stronger in numbers. If you are reading this and you have been assaulted, know you don’t have to be silent and you are not alone. I know it’s scary. I’m scared.”
