A BANKER who has accused a senior female colleague of sexual abuse allegedly tried to negotiate a seven-figure payoff with JPMorgan.
claimed high-ranking executive Lorna Hajdini, 37, across a campaign of alleged abuse when the pair worked together.
Chirayu Rana allegedly tried to negotiate a seven-figure payoff with JPMorgan after accusing a senior female colleague of sexual abuse Credit: Sage Mount
Lorna Hajdini, 37, has been accused of sexually assaulting, racially abusing and drugging Rana when they worked together Credit: Linkedin
Rana had initially filed the case in under a John Doe pseudonym to try and conceal his identity.
But sources close to identified to the New York Post that the married banker is the man behind a bombshell lawsuit.
JPMorgan, who were also co-accused in the suit of not preventing the alleged abuse, confirmed that Rana had delivered a written complaint in May 2024.
He told the HR team detailing what he described as race and gender-based discrimination.
Rana then tried to negotiate a payoff with JPMorgan that ran into the “millions” which would have seen him leave the company and not take the claims to court, sources said.
The major US financial firm did not accept and instead launched an internal investigation where they found no evidence of wrongdoing from Hajdini.
Despite this, Rana’s attorney, Daniel J. Kaiser, has vowed to pursue his client’s claims after saying the banker is a victim of “horrific sexual abuse”.
He added: “As to Ms. Hajdini’s predictable denials, I look forward to discovery and, in particular, her deposition.
“The abuse occurred and we will prove it.”
Rana’s suit also alleges used her position of power to threaten his job and withhold his yearly bonus to try and force him into nonconsensual sexual acts.
Hajdini, who has worked at JPMorgan for over 15 years, is still employed at the company Credit: Instagram
JPMorgan Chase Tower in New York City Credit: Alamy
Hajdini vehemently denies all the claims with sources now claiming she didn’t even have the power to heavily influence his career.
The New York legal filings claims the alleged abuse started soon after Rana joined as a Senior VP/Director at JPMorgan in March 2024.
The banker claims Hajdini was appointed to work as part the leveraged finance team in a senior role in April where she quickly singled him out.
People familiar with the matter have now appeared to confirm that Hajdini wouldn’t often be around Rana due to them having separate managing directors.
Hajdini reported to boss Brandon Graffeo whereas Rana was actually supervised by another managing director in Jon Wolter.
This meant she had no sway over Rana’s bonuses and little influence over his status at JPMorgan, the sources claim.
This does not imply the allegations are false with several of Rana’s allegations stemming from out-of-work meetings between the pair.
The lawsuit includes allegations that Hajdini spiked Rana with Rohypnol and a Viagra-like substance in order to sexually abuse him.
The major US financial firm launched an internal investigation where they found no evidence of wrongdoing from Hajdini Credit: Reuters
JPMorgan denied all of Rana’s allegations Credit: Alamy
In another alleged instance, Rana claims Hajdini turned up at his apartment, took off her top, and started touching her breasts.
He claims he rejected her advances before she started to verbally attack his wife.
The banker accuses the top exec of saying: “Do you want to get promoted at year end or not?
“Do you want a future at JPMorgan? It’s that simple. I don’t know why you’re fighting this.”
Before allegedly adding: “I bet your little Asian, fish head, wife doesn’t have these cannons.”
Moments later, Rana accuses his superior of forcibly removing his trousers and performing oral sex on him, according to the filing.
He claims he started to cry and was again verbally abused.
Rana left less than a year ago shortly after flagging the alleged abuse.
He claims he was reprimanded, locked out of all company systems, and placed on involuntary leave.
Rana has since left his new job as principal at investment firm Bregal Sagemount three weeks ago – just over three weeks before he lodged the complaint against Hajdini.
Hajdini, who has worked at JPMorgan for over 15 years, is still employed at the company.
A friend said she has always been a “top performer” and that the claims have “tarnished her with a complete fabrication”.
Another colleague described Rana as “socially awkward”.
In a shock move, the court filing has now also been withdrawn so “corrections” can be made to the claims.
No trial date for the case has been set yet with a fresh file yet to be given to the .
Despite being retracted, the lawsuit remains reportable as court filings in the US enjoy absolute privilege against defamation claims.
It means news outlets can’t be sued even if the claims in the complaint are later proven to be false or malicious.
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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