Christian Horner's 'intimidated and lonely' accuser 'has been silenced after signing an NDA', close friend claims, insisting the leaked text messages ARE genuine
- Christian Horner's accuser feels 'lonely and scared' according to a family friend
- The Red Bull chief was cleared of wrongdoing after claims of coercive behaviour
- The friend said the woman in question was unable to speak about the matter
The woman at the centre of the Red Bull scandal has said that she is 'very upset, angry, scared, intimidated and lonely', amid the ongoing saga.
A 'friend' of the complainant has told the BBC she 'struggled to understand' how the team dismissed her allegations into her boss Christian Horner.
Horner, 50, has always denied charges of controlling behaviour and was cleared by an internal inquiry.
The 'friend' said: 'It's impossible for people to understand what it's like for her. Every time I have asked her something, she breaks down in tears and says she's got no one to talk to because she's not allowed to talk.
'She is very upset, very angry, very scared, very intimidated, very lonely.'
![Christian Horner's accuser feels 'sad, scared, intimidated and lonely' after her complaint against the Red Bull chief was dismissed](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/04/02/13/83148833-13263383-image-a-78_1712062747262.jpg)
Christian Horner's accuser feels 'sad, scared, intimidated and lonely' after her complaint against the Red Bull chief was dismissed
![Horner has been fighting for his reputation and battling claims of inappropriate behaviour by a female member of staff at Red Bull](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/04/02/13/83051205-13263383-Horner_has_been_fighting_for_his_reputation_and_battling_claims_-a-64_1712059433162.jpg)
Horner has been fighting for his reputation and battling claims of inappropriate behaviour by a female member of staff at Red Bull
![](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/04/03/08/83148839-13263383-image-a-1_1712129543646.jpg)
Horner's wife Halliwell has continued to show support to the team principal
A spokesman for Red Bull said: 'Both parties signed a confidentiality agreement on it so they both can't discuss it.'
The employee has since been suspended on full pay, having been deemed by the inquiry to have made dishonest claims.
![The saga has thrown Red Bull into a crisis, with fears Max Verstappen could walk away if advisor Helmut Marko (R) was suspended over claims he had leaked information](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/04/02/13/83147851-13263383-image-a-69_1712060767743.jpg)
The saga has thrown Red Bull into a crisis, with fears Max Verstappen could walk away if advisor Helmut Marko (R) was suspended over claims he had leaked information
After Horner was exonerated a cache of leaked documents was sent to some 150 F1 personnel, allegedly documenting intimate exchanges between Horner and the employee.
Horner has never confirmed if the correspondence is genuine. He called the emails 'anonymous and speculative'.
The 'friend' added: 'Anybody can come to their own conclusion whether that was an appropriate relationship.
'As Christian has said, he wants to draw a line under this. Well, if this has been a fair and independent process and there has been no wrongdoing, then why isn't that being brought forward in a transparent way and why isn't Christian denying those WhatsApps are real?'