Longtime Ravinia Music Festival leader James Levine accused of molesting teenage boy

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LAKE FOREST, Illinois (Fox 32 News) - Longtime Ravinia Music Festival leader James Levine is accused of molesting a teenage boy for years.

The New York Post and New York Times reported that Levine met the boy when he was 4-years-old and he was taken to meet the maestro.

Later, as a teenager, the boy told police he began to visit Ravinia on his own. In 1985, when the alleged victim was 15, he said that Levine drove him home and held his hand. Levine offered him a grand vision of a future career as a conductor.

The boy told police that Levine first started sexually assaulting him when he was about 16, and that he was molested "hundreds of times" at the upscale Deer Path Inn in Lake Forest.

The alleged victim said that as the sexual assault continued, Levine offered him praise and support in his future career aspirations. 

He went to police in 2016. 

Fox 32 News reached out to the Ravinia Festival for comment late Saturday night but had not yet received a response. Levine also worked for the Metropolitan Opera and they said they are conducting an investigation.