12 June 2023 , 20:22
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Tenoch Huerta has hit out at "false and unsubstantiated" online claims after he was accused of sexual assault by musician and activist Maria Elena Rios.
The Marvel actor, who starred as leading villain Namor in Black Panther 2: Wakanda Forever has denied all accusations from Rios, who he said he dated for "several months".
He took to Instagram to defend himself against the comments, saying "I cannot let it go unchallenged any longer".
Huerta continued: "About a year ago, I dated Elena for several months. It was entirely consensual at all times, as countless others can attest. And throughout it was a loving, warm and mutually supportive relationship.
"After it ended, however, Elena began to misrepresent our interactions both privately and in front of groups of mutual friends."
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Tenoch Huerta denies the allegations (Gerardo Vieyra/NurPhoto/REX/Shutterstock)He said he recently hired a legal team to "commence the appropriate actions to protect my reputation and refute these irresponsible and false accusations that can cause great prejudice and damage".
The actor added: "Although I am by no means perfect, I know that these allegations are simply untrue. And while I will always work to improve myself, I need to contest claims that are both false and offensive."
Huerta, who is also known for his roles in Narcos: Mexico and The Forever Purge, concluded by thanking friends, family and those "willing to look at the facts and reflect before rushing to an untrue and unjust conclusion".
The refute comes after professional saxophonist Rios shared a number of tweets accusing Huerta of sexual assault. In one upload, she referred to him as a "sexual predator".
Tenoch was accused at the weekend (Gerardo Vieyra/NurPhoto/REX/Shutterstock)In the tweets, which were in Spanish, Rios criticised Mexican anti-racism organisation Poder Prieto, of which she is a former member. She said the group shared a podcast episode without her consent and said she had made it very clear that they should not publish anything about her.
In a second tweet, she called Huerta a "narcissist". She claimed: "It is very difficult to talk about the emotional abuse and abuse of power of a sexual predator who is loved in the world for playing a character in a movie like Tenoch Huerta.
"Charming in appearance, the great hallmark of a narcissist, plus a good helping of victimization."