MrBeast has hired a team of investigators to look into allegations of grooming made against Ava Kris Tyson, a longstanding colleague on his YouTube channel.
Tyson, who joined MrBeast’s channel in 2012 and is now 28, has been accused by other YouTubers of sending inappropriate messages to a minor when she was 20, as reported by BBC News.
She vehemently denies the grooming allegations but confirmed that she and MrBeast "mutually agreed" on her departure.
MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson, expressed his revulsion in a follow-up statement regarding the "serious allegations of Ava Tyson's behavior online."
Tyson has apologized for "past behavior" which she acknowledges was "not acceptable."
MrBeast, the world's most-subscribed YouTuber with over 300 million followers, stated he became aware of the allegations, which surfaced online last month, "over the last few days."
"I am disgusted and opposed to such unacceptable acts," he declared.
Donaldson emphasized that he has been "focused on hiring an independent third party to conduct a thorough investigation to ensure I have all the facts."
He continued: "That said, I've seen enough online and taken immediate action to remove Ava from the company, my channel, and any association with MrBeast. I do not condone or support any of the inappropriate actions."
The US YouTuber added that he would await the investigation's conclusion before deciding on any further actions.
Earlier this week, Tyson released a statement, cited by Sky News, saying: "I would like to apologize for any of my past behavior or comments if it hurt or offended anyone. It was not my intent."
She added: "I never groomed anyone. The person who gets brought up in these accusations has vocally supported that they are false.
"Having said that, I humbly apologise to anyone I have hurt with my unacceptable social media posts, past actions, and to those who may feel betrayed by how I used to act online.
"To lump these two factors together to create a narrative that my behavior extended beyond bad edgy jokes is disgusting and did not happen.
"In past years, I have learned that my old humor is not acceptable. I cannot change who I was, but I can continue to work on myself.
"I don't want these accusations to impact the hundreds of people who work at MrBeast, which is why I have stepped away."
Last year, Tyson revealed she is a transgender woman, undergoing gender-affirming therapy, and has since changed her pronouns to she/her.
Tyson has yet to respond to MrBeast’s recent remarks.
The individual who allegedly received the messages from Tyson defended her, stating that online descriptions of their relationship were "massive lies and twisting the truth."
In a post shared on X, he wrote: "Ava never did anything wrong and just made a few edgy jokes. I was never exploited or taken advantage of."
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