Elton John denies claims he groped bodyguard

Elton John has denied claims he repeatedly groped a decorated police officer who served in his security detail.

Jeffrey Wenninger, a captain in the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), has accused the singer of groping him and making sexually suggestive comments towards him.

In legal papers filed in the US on Monday, the policeman said he received unwelcome attention from the married star in 2014. John issued a strongly-worded denial, saying the allegations were driven by money.

Orin Snyder, a US lawyer representing the star’s company, Rocket Entertainment Group, said: “This baseless lawsuit is brought by a disgruntled former security officer seeking to extract an undeserved payment.

"These claims are patently untrue and contradicted by numerous previous statements made by this plaintiff. We will not give in to his latest abuse of the legal system.”

In the papers Mr Wenninger said he had received unwelcome attention on several occasions over the span of several years since he began working on the star’s security team in 2002.

The incidents escalated “in frequency and intensity” after 2010, the lawsuit states, adding: “At no time did plaintiff consent to defendant Elton John touching him in this offensive manner, or in any other manner.”

He worked for the star while off-duty through a private company that he has also launched legal action against, alleging he was improperly removed from working with John in 2014.