I’d say this is very typical actually. There was a CIO at work that people tiptoed around due to bullying. People would walk down to HR, and HR would convince them not to bother complaining... in a nice way of course. Eventually it was my turn and after insisting my complaint be heard, it went nowhere. HR can sometimes be pros for sweeping complaints under the rug.

This is the typical line of defense used by harassers when brought to court « I can’t be an harasser because there was no previous or other complain ». Sorry, it doesn’t work like this. Presumed harassers have to explain why the supporting evidence provided by the accusing party is not valid.