George Zimmerman Family Friend Tells Investigators He Molested Her For Several Years

A family friend of George Zimmerman, the man charged in the shooting death of unarmed Florida teenager Trayvon Martin, came forward shortly after Martin’s highly publicized death to claim that the defendant had molested her for several years, newly released documents reveal.

George Zimmerman’s accuser has been referred to in court documents as Witness #9, and she came forward with information about Zimmerman after the case began to gain steam. The information given to police about the alleged sexual assault was provided March 20th, less than a month after Trayvon Martin was gunned down and well before Zimmerman was arrested for the killing.

The unnamed woman told police that Zimmerman began isolating and touching her in a sexual manner when she was eight, and that the abuse continued until she was 16. The Associated Press quotes the now-adult woman, who says:

“He would reach under the blankets and try to do things… I would try to push him off, but he was bigger, stronger and older.”

The woman tells investigators on the tape that she anonymously reported the crimes to police in Sanford, Florida after the case came to her attention, and on the tapes, they ask her why she waited to come forward about the alleged molestation. She says:

“This is the first time in my life that I’m not afraid of him.”

The woman also claims that George Zimmerman was able to hoodwink supervising adults into believing he was innocent and good-natured while hiding his predatory nature, and she says:

“He was very charming and personable with everybody in the family. But he was different behind closed doors with me … He was very intimidating… I couldn’t take it,” she said. “I didn’t want to be around him anymore.”

Lawyer for George Zimmerman Mark O’Mara fought the release of Witness #9’s statements to investigators, but the judge allowed them to be unsealed.