Folk singer Peter Yarrow has been accused in a new lawsuit of raping an underage girl in a Manhattan hotel room in 1969.
The accusations were lodged against Yarrow, the founding member of legendary ’60s trio Peter, Paul and Mary, in a Wednesday Manhattan Supreme Court suit that was brought under the Child Victims Act.
Before the alleged rape, Yarrow met his accuser, who was a fan of his music, several times at his band’s performances, the suit says.
He then “took an interest in her,” acting what in what the minor thought was “paternal way,” according to the suit.
But the suit alleges that in actuality the folk icon was “grooming” her.
She eventually ran away from her Minnesota home and met Yarrow at a Lower East Side hotel, where he allegedly raped her, the suit says.
The following day, Yarrow bought the minor a plane ticket to Minnesota and told her to leave, the suit alleges.
The accuser “has been suffering the effects of Yarrow’s rape ever since,” according to the suit.
She is seeking compensatory and punitive damages.
Yarrow has a past criminal conviction of “taking indecent liberties” with a 14-year-old girl in a Washington, DC, hotel room in 1970.
Messages seeking comment from Yarrow and his accuser’s lawyers were not immediately returned.
