Kanye West accused of sexually assaulting and strangling model

Rapper Ye – formerly known as Kanye West – has been accused of sexual assault in a civil lawsuit that alleges he strangled a model on the set of a music video in 2010.
WARNING: Article contains strong language and details of abuse that some may find distressing.

Kanye ‘Ye’ West has been at the center of several recent lawsuits, including complaints from former employees accusing him of abuse, as well as an amended suit last month filed by a former assistant accusing him of sexual assault. 
Now, he is being accused of sexual assault in a new lawsuit that alleges he strangled a model on a music video set in 2010. 
The rapper shoved his fingers in her mouth in what the suit refers to as “pornographic gagging,” according to NBC, which had access to the document. 
The incident occurred at the Chelsea Hotel in New York City, according to a federal lawsuit filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. 
The model, Jenifer An, was a background performer for another musician’s video that Ye was guest-starring in, the suit says. 
Ye reportedly “ordered the female background actors/models, including Plaintiff, to line up in the hallway.” He then “evaluated their appearances, pointed to two of the women, and then commanded them to follow him,” the suit says. 
The lawsuit alleges that Ye then pointed at An and said: “Give me the Asian girl.” 
An, who was wearing “revealing lingerie,” felt uncomfortable but went with him to a suite with a couch and a camera, it says. 
“Defendant West then ordered the production team to start the playback music. However, Defendant West did not know his assigned lyrics and instead rambled, ‘Rawr, rawr, rawr,’” the suit says. “Defendant West then pulled two chairs near the camera, positioned them across from each other, and instructed Plaintiff to sit in the chair in front of the camera.” 
The suit alleges that Ye stood “towering over” An and “began to choke Plaintiff with one hand.” 
“He then wrapped his other hand around her neck and continued to strangle her with both hands,” it says. “Next, Defendant West smothered Plaintiff’s face with both of his hands, which smeared her makeup. He then rammed several fingers down her throat, continuously moved them in and out, and gagged her to emulate forced oral sex.” 
The rapper allegedly screamed, “This is art. This is fucking art. I am like Picasso,” according to the lawsuit. It accuses him of sexually assaulting An “in a manner similar to pornographic gagging/deep throat/BDSM fetishes.” 
The suit says that An struggled to breathe and “felt as if she had temporarily blacked out.” It says when West was done, An’s “face was covered in saliva and smeared makeup.” 
An is seeking compensatory and punitive damages against Ye, according to NBC. She wants to “hold the perpetrators accountable through the justice system” and accuses Universal Music Group label of failing to investigate the events in question. 
Indeed, Universal Music Group is also named in the lawsuit as a defendant and accused of failing to investigate the incident. 
The New York City Police Department said it takes “sexual assault and rape cases extremely seriously, and urges anyone who has been a victim to file a police report so we can perform a comprehensive investigation, and offer support and services to survivors.” 
Additional sources • NBC