US government agrees £111 million settlement over Larry Nassar allegations

The US Justice Department announced a 138.7 million-dollar (£111 million) settlement on Tuesday with more than 100 people who accused the FBI of grossly mishandling allegations of sexual assault against Larry Nassar in 2015 and 2016.

This was a critical time gap that allowed the sports doctor to continue to prey on victims before his arrest.

When combined with other settlements, roughly one billion dollars has now been set aside by various organisations to compensate hundreds of women who said Nassar assaulted them under the guise of treatment for sports injuries.

Nassar worked at Michigan State University and also served as a team doctor at Indianapolis-based USA Gymnastics.

He is now serving decades in prison for assaulting female athletes, including medal-winning Olympic gymnasts.

The Justice Department has acknowledged that it failed to step in. For more than a year, FBI agents in Indianapolis and Los Angeles had knowledge of allegations against him but apparently took no action, an internal investigation found.

FBI director Christopher Wray spoke to survivors at a Senate hearing in 2021.

“I’m sorry that so many different people let you down, over and over again,” Mr Wray said. “And I’m especially sorry that there were people at the FBI who had their own chance to stop this monster back in 2015 and failed.”

After a search, investigators said in 2016 that they had found images of child sex abuse and followed up with federal charges against Nassar.

Separately, the Michigan attorney general’s office handled the assault charges that ultimately shocked the sports world and led to an extraordinary days-long sentencing hearing.

“I’m deeply grateful. Accountability with the Justice Department has been a long time in coming,” said Rachael Denhollander of Louisville, Kentucky, who is not part of the latest settlement but was the first person to publicly step forward and detail abuse at the hands of Nassar.

“The unfortunate reality is that what we are seeing today is something that most survivors never see,” Ms Denhollander told The Associated Press. “Most survivors never see accountability. Most survivors never see justice. Most survivors never get restitution.”

Michigan State University, which was also accused of missing chances over many years to stop Nassar, agreed to pay 500 million dollars (£402 million) to more than 300 women and girls who were assaulted.

USA Gymnastics and the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee made a 380 million-dollar (£305 million) settlement.