Tragedy of Michael Jackson’s first sex abuse accuser: Jordy Chandler won $23million settlement but changed his identity to be ‘a normal kid’

Michael Jackson settled the Chandler family’s lawsuit for $23m in 1994 

He was a 12-year-old boy who became friends with his idol, the biggest pop star in the whole world, after sending fan letters to Neverland year after year.

But when Jordan Chandler and his family became part of Michael Jackson‘s inner circle after a chance encounter in 1992, it was no fairytale.

Rather it was a nightmare that would tear them apart like a ‘cancer‘ when Jordy, as he was know, became the first boy to accuse the King of Pop of sexual abuse.

Jordan won a reported $23m settlement from Jackson after his father Evan – who was a dentist and aspiring screenwriter – took legal action against MJ for sexually abusing his son. The singer was never charged over the allegations, which he denied.

But while the lawsuit captured the world’s attention and subsequently turned the LA teen into a household name, Jordan has gone to great lengths to disappear from public view.

Since 1993, Jordy – whose father took his own life days after Michael Jackson’s death in 2009 – has only been pictured on a handful of occasions, and it is not known if he is currently living in the US.

As part of the settlement Jackson family signed with the Chandlers in 1993, they are prevented from ever dramatising the Chandler family or the incident.

However, his name has now been dragged back into the limelight because of the upcoming biopic Michael – which stars the late singer’s nephew Jaafar Jackson – has been delayed over legal issues in its dramatisation of Jordan Chandler,

+7
View gallery

Pictured: June Chandler with her children Lily and Jordan attend the MTV World Music Awards in Monaco in May 1993

+7
View gallery

Pictured: Jordan Chandler skiing at the Lake Tahoe resort in California n 2005 – 12 years after his family $23m settlement

According to Puck, the film’s conclusion ‘hinges specifically on the impact of the Chandler circus’ and will now need to be rewritten and reshot.

Here FEMAIL delves into the mystery of Jordan Chandler – as his historic $23m settlement turns into a headache for Hollywood producers.

MJ’s chance encounter with the Chandlers 

In May 1992, the singer was being chauffeured through Santa Monica, near Los Angeles, when his limousine broke down. His driver sought help at the nearby depot of car-hire company Rent-A-Wreck.

This used car business belonged to Jordan’s stepfather Dave Schwartz and while the pop star was browsing the showroom, the owner frantically called his wife June.

The ex-model raced down to Rent-a-Wreck with Jordan, 12, and Ally, six, to have another chance to meet her son’s hero.

According to a Vanity Fair investigation from the time, Michael Jackson began calling Jordan ‘almost daily’ from then onwards.

At the time, he was preparing for the Dangerous World Tour and had also recreated the World Council of Children, saying in a statement: ‘I want to tell the children of the world, You’re all our children, each one of you is my child, and I love you all.’

+7
View gallery

Pictured: Jordan Chandler’s mother June in 2005 when she was called to testify in Gavin Arvizo’s lawsuit against Michael Jackson

+7
View gallery

Pictured: Michael Jackson performing during the Dangerous World Tour in October 1993 – the same year he was accused of sexually abusing Jordan Chandler

Read More

Troubling reason Michael Jackson biopic is delayed by six months

Along with his regular phone calls, Michael was also reported to have treated Jordan and Ally to shopping sprees at Toys ‘R’ Us – while also buying expensive jewellery for June.

On top of this, Jordan was often whisked away to Neverland, Jackson’s fantasy ranch, which was a two-hour drive up the coast.

In May 1993, June, Jordan and Lily accompanied Michael Jackson to the MTV World Music Awards in Monaco.

In a Department of Children’s Services report, Jordan would later claim that this is when the sexual abuse ‘really got out of hand’. Months later, the family would join Michael Jackson in Las Vegas.

While testifying in a separate lawsuit 12 years later, June claimed Michael appeared at her Vegas hotel room one night in tears – accusing her of ‘betraying their family’ by not allowing Jordan to sleep in his room.

The mother-of-two claimed that Michael said: ‘Why don’t you trust me? We’re a family. Why won’t you allow him to be with me? Why won’t you let him sleep in my room?’

After 30 minutes of Jackson’s pleas, June says she finally relented – and was gifted a Cartier bracelet from the star the next morning.

+7
View gallery

Growing up in the outskirts of Los Angeles , the schoolboy – whose parents had divorced – sent fan letters to Neverland and was said to have idolised the King of Pop

Evan Chandler’s legal action and $23m settlement

According to Vanity Fair, Jordan’s father Evan began to grow suspicious of the nature of Michael’s relationship with his son – as the adolescent started missing his normal scheduled visitations.

At first, the dentist, who remarried and had another son, reportedly ‘bragged’ about Jordan’s friendship with Michael Jackson – but became alarmed when he saw the two sharing a bed fully clothed.

That June, the father-of-two confronted his ex-wife about Michael at his son’s school graduation and reportedly broke down in tears during an appointment with lawyer Barry Rothman, who agreed to represent him in a custody battle.

After consulting psychiatrist Dr Mathis Abrams and detailing Michael Jackson’s ‘brainwashing’ behaviour, Evan claimed his son told him that he had been abused by the pop star.

He then brought his son in for an appointment with Dr Abrams, who reported Jordan’s claims to the police. A Vanity Fair investigation claimed Jordan asked to stay with his father during this time – amid fears he would be expected to join MJ on his Dangerous World tour.

+7
View gallery

Pictured: Michael Jackson’s Neverland ranch estate in Santa Barbara, which was two hours from Jordan’s home

When June was told about Jordan’s allegations, she reportedly ‘broke down and said she couldn’t believe how stupid she had been’.

Following their investigation, the LAPD found no physical evidence they could use against Michael Jackson. As such, the singer was never charged over the allegations.

In September 1993, the Chandlers filed a lawsuit against the pop star. The following year, they reached a reported $23m settlement, which included a $2m trust fund for Jordan and $1.5m for his parents.

The settlement included a clause that outlined how it should not be considered an admission of guilt.

In addition, both sides are thought to have signed non-disclosure agreements in January 1994, which prevented them from discussing details of the deal.

Larry Feldman, the lawyer who negotiated the settlement for the Chandlers, told The Times: ‘[The Jacksons] were sure they wanted to protect Michael — they did not want the Chandlers going out and telling a story about Michael and Michael having to defend himself. And I wanted to protect the Chandlers on the same side.’

Jordan’s fight to avoid the spotlight 

According to the 2012 book Untouchable: The Strange Life and Tragic Death of Michael Jackson, Evan took his son to Germany after the settlement was reached.

However, the father-and-son are reported to have returned to Los Angeles a year later and Evan enrolled his son at the prestigious Crossroads School, whose famous alumnae include Gwyneth Paltrow, Maya Rudolph, Michael Bay and Liv Tyler.

The Telegraph reports New Girl actress Zooey Deschanel was one of Jordan’s classmates in the 1990s.

In 1997, The People reported Jordan instructed his financial aides to invest in the school before then buying shares in Chevron, Mobil and The Bank of New York.

Following Evan’s split from his second wife Natalie, Jordan reportedly continued living with his former step-mother and two half-siblings.

Author Victor Gutierrez said: ‘All Jordy wants is to be a normal kid. But he can’t have that. The memories are too painful, and no amount of money can compensate for that.’

+7
View gallery

Pictured: Michael Jackson waves as he arrives at the Santa Barbara County Courthouse for his child molestation trial in May 2005

Although Jordan was said to have escaped relatively unscathed from his ordeal thanks to psychotherapy sessions, throughout his teens he was tormented by irrational feelings of guilt for having proved so attractive to Jackson, and kept asking: ‘What did I do wrong?’

When he was 18, Jordan – who Fox News reports has not seen his mother since 1993 – moved to New York for university and studied finance.

Alongside his studies, the teen interned at record companies and lived between his Manhattan apartment, which was in a building with a running track and rooftop pool, and Hamptons beach home, which he sold for $2.9m in 2003.

Jordan, who is suspected to have changed his name to stay out of the limelight, was last pictured in 2005 at the Californian ski resort of Lake Tahoe with his half-siblings and his singer girlfriend Sonnet Simmons, whom he used to write songs with.

At the time, Michael Jackson was on trial for molesting another young boy – but was later acquitted of all charges.

As a result of this rare paparazzi shot, Jordan reportedly moved back into Evan’s New Jersey home in a bid to live a private life.

In 2006, it was revealed Jordan – who was 26 at the time – had taken out a restraining order against his father, accusing Evan of hitting him with a 12lb weight before later choking him.

Although a judge reversed the order in the belief it did not constitute a pattern of domestic violence, the appellate judges later reinstated it.

Just months after Michael Jackson’s death in 2009, Evan Chandler took his own life – having been battling Gaucher’s Disease, an incredibly rare condition that causes fatty deposits to build up in certain organs and bones.

As the Daily Mail reported at the time, Evan received so many death threats that he turned into a paranoid recluse, frequently changing address and transforming his appearance with no fewer than 19 plastic surgery operations

As he never had any visitors, his body might have lain undiscovered for days, had he not missed an important medical appointment, prompting his doctor to raise the alarm.

Evan’s brother Raymond told The Daily Mail: ‘The Jackson saga was like a cancer in the family, and it has affected us all. We were never the same afterwards.

‘The fact is our lives radically changed and for the worse. The whole thing was a curse. People can talk about the money [the $20million settlement], but there’s no amount of money in the world that’s worth any of that.’

In November 2016, TMZ reported Wade Robson’s lawyers were searching for Jordan in the hopes they could get him to speak on the record about his experience with Michael Jackson.

Wade Robson, an Australian dancer and choreographer, met Jackson when he was five years old and claims he was also abused by the pop star, which was outlined in the 2019 documentary Finding Neverland.

By 2017, the team were looking outside of the United States for Jordan – over suspicions he had fled the country to avoid the deposition.

Wade’s attorney Vince Finaldi said at the time: ‘He’s a key piece of the puzzle surrounding this case, and we’re not going to stop until we find him.’

However, the lawsuit didn’t hold up in court as the statute of limitations for the alleged crime had lapsed.