EXPOSED: Exclusives///elmo puppeteer kevin clash takes leave sesame street amid sex allegations - Exclusive Report

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Elmo Puppeteer Kevin Clash Takes Leave From Sesame Street Amid Sex Allegations

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Nov. 12 2012, Published 8:00 a.m. ET

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By Breaking Celebrity News Staff

You may not know his name, but you know his work.

Kevin Clash, the puppeteer behind Elmo since 1985, has taken a leave of absence from Sesame Street amid allegations that he had a relationship with a 16-year-old boy, Breaking Celebrity News has learned.

Representatives for Sesame Workshop said a 23-year-old man reached out to the company in June claiming that he had a relationship with Clash starting seven years earlier.

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"We took the allegation very seriously and took immediate action,"  the reps said in the statement. "We met with the accuser twice and had repeated communications with him. We met with Kevin, who denied the accusation. We also conducted a thorough investigation and found the allegation of underage conduct to be unsubstantiated. Although this was a personal relationship unrelated to the workplace, our investigation did reveal that Kevin exercised poor judgment and violated company policy regarding Internet usage and he was disciplined."