EXCLUSIVEShocking claims of rape against ex-Fox News anchor Ed Henry could unravel as kinky texts with alleged victim are revealed
Raunchy texts between ex-Fox News anchor Ed Henry and a young female staffer revealed in a new legal filing threaten to undercut her shocking claims of rape.
Raunchy texts between ex-Fox News anchor Ed Henry and a young female staffer revealed in a new legal filing threaten to undercut her shocking claims of rape.
A 2020 lawsuit by former Fox Business associate producer Jennifer Eckhart, 34, accused Henry, 53, of handcuffing, beating and raping her in 2017, after a campaign of predatory grooming and manipulation.
But on Monday, Henrys lawyers unveiled texts between the two that they claimed show an enthusiastic and consensual, albeit kinky, relationship.
Just days after she claimed he raped her, Eckhart, 34, texted Henry: You wanna f*** me, Come spread them and slide my bikini off, F***ing dirty boy. I love it, and Want it. Badly, according to screenshots of text messages in his latest legal filing.
The new court papers also described 15 naked and explicit photos she allegedly sent Henry, who co-hosted the show Americas Newsroom, in the two weeks after the alleged rape.
Five of the 15 photos were not of her, but other women, Henrys new motion stated.
The legal filing said they had sadomasochistic, kinky sex on February 10, 2017, that was prompted by Eckharts highly provocative sexting. The physical encounter involved Henry hitting her with a belt, and restraining her with handcuffs.
Although rough, Henry claimed it was all agreed on beforehand, saying she sent Ed a photograph of a belt and told him in a text message that she would always obey and make myself available to u, adding You NEED my 26-year-old p***y.
Raunchy texts between ex-Fox News anchor Ed Henry, 53, and a young female staffer who accused him of raping her, show their kinky relationship, according to Henrys lawyers
Former Fox Business associate producer Jennifer Eckhart, 34, filed a 2020 lawsuit that accused Henry, 53, of handcuffing, beating and raping her in 2017 after a campaign of grooming
Just days after she claimed he raped her, Eckhart texted Henry: You wanna f*** me, Come spread them and slide my bikini off, according to screenshots of text messages in his latest legal filing
The day before the sexual encounter, Henry texted Eckhart: Gentle little wh**e. Gonna get tossed around like a rag doll, and she replied Love that, according to the WhatsApp screenshots.
Henry has been married to NPR Managing Editor Shirley Henry since 2010.
And his legal filing alleged that Eckhart cherry-picked excerpts of their text conversations to cast him as a rapist when he claimed that it was instead a steamy, consensual affair.
All the WhatsApp messages preserved for litigation are selectively chosen photographs of a portion of Jennifers communications with Ed, his lawyers wrote.
Many of these messages, including most of the ones Jennifer thinks are incriminating, have been cut off to obscure a final comment by Jennifer expressing pleasure, agreement or desire.
The photos supposedly sent by Eckhart to Henry ten days after the alleged rape, included a photograph of herself in black lingerie with the tips of the two middle fingers of her left hand inserted into her panties; a photograph of herself lying sideways in her underwear on the bed, breast thrust forward; a photograph of a woman from a side view showing a nearly naked bottom; and a photograph of her own fully exposed, slightly parted vagina lathered in soap.
Ed and Jennifer also continued sexting in the weeks after and months after the alleged rape, with frequent references to rough, consensual sex, with Jennifer often initiating, the filing said.
In her original legal complaint, filed in June 2020, Eckhart accused Henry of having groomed, psychologically manipulated and coerced [her] into having a sexual relationship with him, and that the alleged twisted process began at the young age of 24, by exerting his abuse of power over her and her career.
Henry has been married to NPR Managing Editor Shirley Henry since 2010 amid numerous sex scandals including a tryst with Las Vegas stripper Natalie Lima
The legal filing said they had kinky sex on February 10 that was prompted by Eckharts highly provocative sexting. The sex was rough, Henry stated, but she sent a photograph of a belt beforehand
His legal filing alleged that Eckhart cherry-picked excerpts of their text conversations to cast him as a rapist when he claimed that it was instead a steamy, consensual affair
Ed and Jennifer also continued sexting in the weeks after and months after the alleged rape, with frequent references to rough, consensual sex, with Jennifer often initiating, the filing said
She stated he sexually assaulted her on office property, and raped her at a hotel where Fox News frequently lodged its visiting employees, and took photos of her while she was naked, helpless and restrained to use for blackmail.
Their first sexual encounter was in 2014, in Henrys room at the New York Marriott Marquis after they exchanged emails and met for a drink at the hotel bar.
Their second was at the Fox News offices on September 16, 2015. Henry claimed Eckhart initiated that tryst by handing him an envelope containing the panties she had been wearing that day while preparing to go to the New York Stock Exchange with Liz Claman – who Eckhart worked with as an assistant producer for The Claman Countdown.
She then went up to see Ed in his office and performed oral sex on him while the cab was waiting outside to take Claman and Eckhart to their meeting, according to his legal filing.
Her complaint told a similar story but said she did it in fear knowing that she would face retaliation if she refused to comply, believing Henry to be a very powerful man at Fox and that he physically forced her to perform oral sex on him in his office.
Henrys new legal filing included quotes from their emails a month later.
On October 21, 2015, Eckhart emailed Henry that she had wiped all the dirty pictures, which he said was a reference to a story at the time about suspect messages being wiped from Hillary Clintons email server.
He responded, Id like to wipe you with my tongue, and claimed that 20 minutes later she wrote back I bet you would, dirty boy. Come n get it.
Text messages that Henrys lawyers said depicted their rough, consensual affair. In these texts, Henry asks Eckhart when shes available so she can get slapped around. In response, Eckhart coyly states Hmm.. idk, Im really busy
Eckhart admitted giving Henry oral sex in his office, but claimed she did it in fear knowing that she would face retaliation if she refused to comply
Fox guest news analyst Cathy Areu claimed Henry sexually harassed her with explicit messages but Federal Judge Gabriel Gorenstein later dismissed her claims
Eckhart is not the only woman Henry was embroiled in a sex scandal with.
He was exposed in May 2016 for having an affair with Las Vegas stripper Natalie Lima and was suspended by Fox for several months while he had treatment for alleged sex addiction – returning in September that year.
He was eventually fired by the company in July 2020, following Eckharts New York federal lawsuit filed jointly with guest news analyst Cathy Areu – who claimed Henry also sexually harassed her with explicit text messages.
Federal Judge Gabriel Gorenstein later dismissed Areus claims.
In a filing in the case last month, Eckhart added new claims that Henry had engaged in an inappropriate sexual relationship with another unnamed Fox colleague and had used a work electronic device in a sexting incident.
Eckharts attorneys filed a sworn statement from the anonymous current Fox staffer on Monday, saying she had a secret, consensual affair with Henry that began after he sent her an unsolicited picture of his penis, and that it went on from November 2016 until Spring 2020.
She called him emotionally abusive, and described one incident in which during a consensual sexual encounter he slapped my face a little harder than I would have liked and I cried right away.
Ed apologized when he realized that I was upset, the woman wrote. But maintained in her declaration that it their relationship was consensual.
Henry told DailyMail.com: I am elated by the fact that the judge has ordered evidence unmasked that proves my innocence against these false allegations
Eckhart added new claims in a filing last month that stated Henry was in an inappropriate relationship with another unudentifiedFox colleague
That Fox colleague filed her own declaration that stated their relationship was consensual where she viewed Henry as her boyfriend but stated Henry was emotionally abusive
Eckhart claimed that Fox knew about Henrys alleged abuse and promoted him instead of disciplining him. The network says they only found out when she made her legal complaint on June 25, 2020.
I have maintained my innocence from day one and have consistently said the truth will win out, and here we are more than four years later, Henry told DailyMail.com in a statement on Monday.
I am elated by the fact that the judge has ordered evidence unmasked that proves my innocence against these false allegations.
He claimed Eckharts story has always been a lie, and with the judge now ordering the release of this exculpatory information, everyone can see the claims against me are false and motivated by clear and actual malice that led to me being defamed.
