Barry Brecheisen/WireImage(LOS ANGELES) — Former MythBusters host Adam Savage is denying allegations from his sister that he sexually abused her when they were children.
In a lawsuit obtained by the New York Post, Miranda Pacchiana, 51, claims the abuse took place “beginning around 1976 and continuing until approximately 1979,” when she was between seven and 10 years old and Savage was between nine and 12.
Pacchiana filed her lawsuit under the New York Child Victims Act, which extends the statute of limitations for a survivor of child sexual abuse in criminal and civil cases.
In a statement on Tuesday, Savage denied the accusations, insisting Pacchiana “needs help,” alleging she has “relentlessly and falsely attacked me and other members of my family to anyone who will listen” in pursuit of “a financial bonanza.”
He closed by vowing to “fight this groundless and offensive lawsuit and work to put this to rest once and for all.”
In a separate statement, Karen Savage, Adam and Miranda’s mother, backed her son, writing, “It makes me very sad to say this, but my daughter suffers from severe mental health challenges…Adam is a good man, and I support him completely.”
In a blog post published Tuesday, on her website The Second Wound, which aims to support survivors of sexual abuse or assault, Pacchiana reiterated the allegations addressed in the lawsuit, claiming the abuse the led to “periods of depression and near-constant anxiety.”
Miranda claims she last made contact with Adam “over two decades ago” to address his “callous attitude about the abuse and his apparent disregard for the damage he had caused,” but says Savage “chose not to acknowledge or show any compassion for my pain.”
“While nothing can give back what Adam Savage took from me, I hope this lawsuit will also demonstrate to my fellow survivors that we do not deserve to carry the shame of sexual abuse and assault,” she wrote.
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