Bill Hutchinson, who stars on the Lifetime series Marrying Millions, was arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting a teenage girl. The alleged victim, 17, reported the incident to police in early June. Hutchinson, 63, is a prominent Dallas-area developer who is engaged to Brianna Ramirez, 23. Hutchinson and Ramirez have appeared in both seasons of Marrying Millions, which launched in 2019.
Hutchinson was booked into the Highland Park, Texas jail Tuesday on one count of sexual assault, reports the Dallas Morning-News. He was released on a $30,000 bond. According to the arrest warrant affidavit, the teenager told authorities invited her and other minors to his home in Highland Park. He allegedly gave them alcohol and marijuana to smoke. In May, he allegedly touched her inappropriately, the woman clams.
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The teenager claims she got drunk and fell asleep on Hutchinson’s couch. When she woke up, Hutchinson was allegedly sexually assaulting her. Police also obtained a video of another minor claiming Hutchinson behaved in a similar manner with her at his Long Beach, California home. Hutchinson is not facing charges of assaulting a minor because the age of consent is 17 in Texas, notes TMZ.
Hutchinson has denied the allegations. “I’m innocent of this charge and accusation,” he said in a statement Thursday. “Anyone who knows me in this city knows that I am not capable of assault, sexual or otherwise. Hopefully, all of my colleagues and friends will give me the benefit of the doubt until I prove my innocence in court.”
Hutchinson is the founder of Dunhill Partners, which recently teamed up with Richard Branson to develop Virgin Hotels Dallas. It also manages retail space throughout the country. Dunhill recently promoted executive vice president Andy Crosland to president, with Hutchinson serving as chairman of the board. In 2019, Hutchinson joined Marrying Millions, a Lifetime series focusing on couples who have come under scrutiny from their family. In the series, he is engaged to Ramirez, whom he met when she was working as a waitress. She was 18 when they met and is younger than Hutchinson’s three eldest children.
In a 2019 interview with the Dallas Morning-News, Hutchinson said he declined to appear on Marrying Millions several times before he agreed. “We never really seek it out, but people come to us because we live large. We’re a beautiful, extended family,” he said of the attention the couple gets. “People are intrigued by us because we aren’t normal. … I have long hair, I look like a hippie, but I’m doing business in Highland Park.”