CONTENT WARNING: This article discusses sexual assault.
The 48-year-old star of hit American prank show, Impractical Jokers, Joe Gatto has issued a response to a sexual assault allegation made by a woman on TikTok.
“I have used poor judgment and as a result have violated the trust of the people I love most,” Gatto told PageSix on Saturday.
“But anyone who knows me at all knows full well that I wouldn’t assault anyone.
“Working on myself is an ongoing process, and I am now going to take some time away from the public eye to focus my energies where I need to.”
In a TikTok posted on Friday, user @joozyb stated that she was “sexually assaulted by Joe Gatto” when she was 19 in 2023, after he had “just gotten back together” with his wife.
“I’m sorry if you don’t want to believe me,” the woman said in the video.
“But the people you idolise are not always going to be good. They’re going to do shitty things and they’re going to take advantage of people.”
The user also posted other TikToks about the alleged incident, including screenshots of Instagram DMs between herself and Gatto.
@joozyb’s original TikTok posted on Friday. (Source: TikTok/@joozyb)
Gatto was a founding member of the hit prank TV show Impractical Jokers alongside Brian “Q” Quinn, James “Murr” Murray, and Sal Vulcano, featuring on the show from season 1 to 9 before leaving to “focus on his personal life” in 2022.
Gatto announced his departure via an Instagram post, stating that he needed to “step away” from the show.
“[His wife] and I have decided to amicably part ways, so now I need to focus on being the best father and co-parent to our two incredible kids,” Gatto wrote.
PEDESTRIAN.TV does not suggest the allegations against Gatto are true, only that they have been made and he has responded to them.
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