LOS ANGELES — Chris Harrison is speaking out on the Bachelor scandal in which a contestant was kicked off the show for an "inappropriate relationship" with a male staffer.
In an episode that aired Monday night, Rozlyn Papa was booted from the ABC program after it was determined she got close to a male producer on the show. How close? Harrison hints that the pair definitely hooked up.
"It was an inappropriate relationship that got physical," he wrote Tuesday in his Entertainment Weekly blog. "This was not just about one person's 'feelings' for another. We would never go to such extremes because of a schoolyard crush. After extensive research and doing our homework we came to the conclusion without a shadow of a doubt that an inappropriate relationship had occurred."
Harrison said the incident came to light after several contestants witnessed Papa's "behavior firsthand." That was followed by the producer confirming what had taken place, which ultimately led to his being fired from the show.
"He told executive producers everything about his inappropriate physical relationship with Rozlyn," Harrison said of the unidentified employee. "As I clearly stated on the show last night, we took what happened very seriously and this staffer was let go immediately. With what you saw last night and with what I just told you there should now be no doubt or questions whatsoever as to what really happened during Rozlyn's short time on the show."
"I can also tell you here that since Rozlyn left the show she and the staffer have continued their relationship and have seen each other several times," the 38-year-old host continued. "Let me be very clear that as unfortunate as all this was there are no ill feelings toward anybody involved and we wish both of them well. In the little time I got to know her, Rozlyn was a very nice young lady and in no way would I ever want to add any undue stress or embarrassment to her life."
Papa, a 28-year-old single mother, has denied having a physical relationship with the producer. When asked point blank by Entertainment Tonight if she had sex with the staffer, the model said, "Absolutely not. No. ... I made good decisions. I did not choose to have sex with someone else."
The Richmond, Va. resident also said that being portrayed as a cheater has hurt her reputation.
"I absolutely feel betrayed by the show. ... They want the ratings, and that's what they're getting," she told ET. "This seeps into my personal life. I have a 7-year-old little boy at home that I want to look up to me, and to have this blatant lie out there perpetuated by the show itself, it's hurtful. It's scary to think what my son will think of me."
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