WWE Chairman Vince McMahon Served With Subpoena, Search Warrant

STAMFORD, CT — Federal law enforcement agents executed a search warrant and issued a federal grand jury subpoena to World Wrestling Entertainment Executive Chairman Vince McMahon last month, according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings on Wednesday.

The filing also revealed that McMahon went on medical leave on July 21 after undergoing major spinal surgery. He will remain on medical leave until further notice, the filing said, but will stay in his role as executive chairman.

McMahon stepped down from his role as the head of the company in June 2022 following a Wall Street Journal report that the WWE's board was investigating McMahon for "a secret $3 million settlement" he agreed to pay to a former employee "with whom he allegedly had an affair."

In the days after, the WSJ also reported that McMahon reportedly paid more than $12 million to multiple women in order to silence allegations of sexual misconduct and infidelity over the years.

The WWE's investigation was completed in the fourth quarter of 2022.

"However, related government investigations remain ongoing," the company said in the SEC filing Wednesday, noting that no charges have been brought. "The company has received voluntary and compulsory legal demands for documents, including from federal law enforcement and regulatory agencies, concerning the investigation and related subject matters."

According to CNBC, WWE said it believes the subpoena and search warrant, which were served on July 17, are "a continuation of the investigation" that began last summer. The company added that it has cooperated throughout and "fully understands and respects the government's need for a complete process."

No other details on the subpoena or search warrant were mentioned.

In a separate statement to CNBC, McMahon said he has "always denied any intentional wrondgoing" and continues to do so. He expressed confidence that the government's investigation "will be resolved without any findings of wrongdoing," CNBC reported.

In the latest SEC filing, WWE noted it has received $17.4 million in the current year period from McMahon to reimburse the company for costs associated with the board's special committee investigation.

McMahon, who turns 78 on Aug. 24, retired in 2022 but made a comeback earlier this year to participate in the possible sale of WWE.

McMahon purchased what was then the World Wrestling Federation in the early 1980s from his father, Vincent J. McMahon, and helped bring wrestling and sports entertainment to new heights both across the United States and around the world.

In April, WWE announced an agreement to merge with Endeavor, the parent company that runs Ultimate Fighting Championship, to create a $21-plus billion global live sports and entertainment company.

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