RuPaul’s Drag Race winner Sharon Needles accused of terrorizing a 15-year-old superfan

The Daily Beast

Needles, the stage name of Aaron Coady, won Season 4 of Drag Race in 2012. One of Needles' fans was Annecy, a young queer person growing up in the South. As The Daily Beast's Amy Zimmerman reports: "In 2013, when they were 15, Annecy started to interact with their idol, Aaron Coady, on Vine. Annecy, who was frequently suicidal as a teen, recalled one night in which they 'took a bunch of pills,' Annecy said they spoke to Coady that night, and he 'started talking to me about how he thinks suicide is beautiful and that I should keep eating pills, and kept calling me an idiot and a moron.' Annecy, 15, and Coady, then 31, had never met in person. When Annecy and Coady did meet, in November 2013, Annecy alleged that the abuse quickly escalated. Because of a superfan testimonial, Annecy had won passage aboard a Drag Race-themed cruise. Over the course of those eight days, Annecy told The Daily Beast, their hero crossed a number of physical and emotional boundaries. Annecy alleged that Coady repeatedly gave them 'shotguns of weed' and encouraged them to drink alcohol. They also allege that Coady hit them multiple times. At one point, Annecy claimed, Coady 'sat on my neck and choked me.'" In a statement, Coady’s legal counsel wrote: “Sharon has vehemently denied the allegations against her, and is prepared to defend herself against this individual to the fullest extent possible.”