Vince McMahon steps down from all roles with WWE and UFC's TKO Group amid sex trafficking accusations

Vince McMahon has stepped down from his position as the executive chairman of TKO Group Holdings and forfeited his place on the TKO board of directors following allegations of sex trafficking from one of his former employees.

The American businessman will no longer have any role with either the TKO Group or the WWE.

In a social media post earlier today, media personality Sean Ross Sapp shared a memo sent by WWE president Nick Khan to all staff, addressing the situation and confirming McMahon's resignation.

Earlier this Thursday, Janel Grant, who worked in the legal and talent departments of the WWE, accused McMahon of forcing her into a sexual relationship in order for her to acquire and keep her job.

According to a report by ABC News, she also accused the 78-year-old of passing around pictures and pornographic videos of her to other employees.

After the fallout, the former TKO chairman released a statement of his own, saying:

"I stand by my prior statement that Ms. Grant's lawsuit is replete with lies, obscene made-up instances that never occurred, and is a vindictive distortion of the truth. I intend to vigorously defend myself against these baseless accusations and look forward to clearing my name. [H/t The Hollywood Reporter]"

While McMahon has found his way back to positions of power following compromising allegations in the past, The Hollywood Reporter has quoted Khan hinting that such a scenario is unlikely this time around:

"Mr. McMahon does not control TKO, nor does he oversee the day-to-day operations of WWE."

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When Vince McMahon lauded the TKO merger

While his position at TKO has now been compromised, Vince McMahon was all in favor of WWE and being absorbed into the TKO group holding along with the UFC.

During an interview with CNBC, the pro wrestling promoter lauded the deal as an effective method to get the maximum value out of the promotion:

"It is the right time. It is the right time to do the right thing, and it's the next evolution of the WWE. I could probably do what Ari [Emanuel] [TKO group CEO] is doing with the UFC, it'd take me 10 years. By the time I grab those 10 years, he'll be 10-years ahead. So, it makes all the sense in the world, to extract all the value we can off the marketplace."

Catch Vince McMahon's comments below: