Former Voice contestant Melanie Martinez has spoken out in response to the rape allegations against her. Martinez was accused of rape by Timothy Heller, and now she has responded with her own version of the events. Martinez acknowledged that there was a relationship between the two, but that she was “horrified” by Heller’s statement.
“What she and I shared was a close friendship for a period of time. We came into each other’s lives as we were both starting our careers as artists, and we tried to help each other. We both had pain in dealing with our individual demons and the new paths we were forging, but I truly felt we were trying to lift each other up. She never said no to what we chose to do together. And although we parted ways, I am sending her love and light always.”
Heller initially released the story about the alleged assaults and then added that she was talking about Martinez. Heller referred to her “inner turmoil” and expressed that she felt like she “owed her my life.” Heller’s version of the sexual experience was that Martinez was wearing her down and continued to touch her and ask her if she could do more and more. Heller says she did not consent, and that eventually Martinez performed oral sex on her and also penetrated her with a sex toy.
“I never said yes. I said no, repeatedly. But she used her power over me and broke me down. Just so there is no confusion, I was molested by my best friend.”
Heller further explained that she didn’t resist the action physically but that she made it clear that she was not interested in the experience. The women reportedly never discussed the interaction and then grew apart because of it.
When I wrote this story about my assault, I initially wasn’t going to make the abuser. But I think it’s important for you all to know this is about Melanie Martinez pic.twitter.com/4PQ5oNI2s9
— Timothy Heller (@timethyheller) December 4, 2017