Below Deck’s Gary King Speaks Out After Fans Blast Ashley Marti For ‘Assault!’

Gary King is speaking out after viewers accused his Below Deck Sailing Yacht co-star, Ashley Marti, of sexual assault after the show revealed that the duo briefly hooked up following a boozy crew night out.  

King addressed the controversy during an appearance on Watch What Happens Live Monday night. 

“People are very concerned – they feel like they were very uncomfortable watching it,” WWHL host, Andy Cohen, told the Bravo first mate.

King, 33, thanked fans for “looking out” for him, but said that he had moved on from the incident.

“I didn’t think much of it then, and right now, I don’t think much of it too,” King said. “I just think that people on social media blew it up bigger than what it actually was.”

Cohen pointed out that social media had been buzzing with fans calling what went down “an assault.”  King reminded viewers that he and Ashley, 24, had sex, earlier in the season.

“Yeah I could see how they saw that, but in the first place, I did hook up with Ashley prior to that happening … I just wish I wasn’t that drunk,” he continued. “I think it boils down to hooking up with Ashley was a mistake in the first place and it shouldn’t have happened from the get-go, really.” 

The Bravo host then asked King straight out if he believed that he was assaulted.

“No, I don’t,” King responded. “I don’t, and I appreciate everyone standing up for me, but I’ve got a voice of my own and I could use it if I felt I was assaulted.”

The episode occurred after Marti and King went to a guest cabin so Marti could give King a private massage. King, who was more inebriated than the stewardess, did not realize that they were having sex until Marti spoke up.

“Get it out, okay we’re not having sex, we’re not having sex,” King told her, to which she replied, “we are, it’s already in.”

Marti alleged the next day that she had performed oral sex on King. King said that it was “embarrassing” that he had no memory of the interaction. Marti kept repeating that the pair had hooked up over the next few episodes, despite King’s lack of recall.    

Fans sounded off on Twitter about the situation, with many calling Marti’s actions “gross” and “not okay.” 

“I was appalled while watching this week’s Below Deck,” one Twitter user wrote. “Does Ashley know what rape and sexual assault are? The show shows her stalking Gary this season. Gary goes along with the flirting. However he is clearly saying no. If the rolls [sic] were reversed she would be arrested.”

Another fan tweeted—“Ashley taking Gary downstairs for a ‘massage’ and then forcing him to have sex with her when he is half passed out is sexual assault. If she was a guy the police would be involved. You could see how uncomfortable Gary was. He literally ran away from her!”

Below Deck Sailing Yacht airs on Mondays at 9 pm, ET, on Bravo. 

 

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