The Pervnado has hit the world of professional sports mascots.
The man who plays the Los Angeles Kings’ icon “Bailey the Lion” allegedly groped a guy’s butt — while in costume, according to a new lawsuit.
Maso Griffin, who works as a dishwasher at the Staples Center, claims the 6-foot anthropomorphized lion squeezed his buttocks while in an elevator at the hockey team’s arena in December 2016 — and he was mocked then fired when he complained, the LA Daily News reports.
Griffin says he was mad when he felt the man behind the mask, Tim Smith, allegedly pawing his posterior. But before he could say anything, another co-worker in the elevator quickly warned him that Smith is married to the team’s director of human resources, Melissa Smith, according to the complaint.
The dishwasher nevertheless complained to Melissa the next day, but she got mad, and took him off the roster for a while — then fired him several weeks later, the Daily News reports.
In the meantime, co-workers made fun of Griffin for the alleged sexual assault, with remarks including, “Was his hand furry?” he claims.
Griffin is suing for unspecified damages.