CHRITIANO RONALDO IN A RAPE SCANDAL
US police are seeking a DNA sample from
Cristiano Ronaldo over accusations that he raped a woman a decade ago in Las
Vegas.
Ronaldo, 33, widely regarded as one of the
greatest football players of all time, has maintained he is innocent of rape
and said through his Las Vegas lawyer on Thursday that the sexual encounter in
question was consensual.
However, Nevada police have made an official
request to counterparts in Italy for a sample of the footballer's DNA.
The matter came to light in September 2018
when Kathryn Mayorga sued Ronaldo in Clark County District Court in Nevada,
accusing the athlete of raping her in a Las Vegas hotel penthouse suite in
2009, then paying her $375,000 in hush money.
Mayorga's lawyers said in September she was
now seeking $200,000 in damages and to void the non-disclosure agreement, which
they said she was coerced into signing by "personal reputation protection
specialists hired" by the football star.
Ronaldo said on Twitter after the suit was
filed that his "clear conscience" would allow him "to await with
tranquility the results of any and all investigations."
The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department
said at the time an incident report was filed with police on the night of the
alleged assault, and the case had since been reopened. But the police declined
at the time to name Ronaldo as a subject of the investigation.
The Wall Street Journal, citing an unnamed
law enforcement official with knowledge of the case, reported on Thursday that
authorities in Las Vegas had sent a warrant seeking DNA from the football star
to the court system in Italy, where Ronaldo plays as a forward for the
professional football club Juventus. He also is captain of Portugal's national
team.
According to the Journal, investigators want
to see if Ronaldo's DNA matches a sample found on a dress of his accuser that
belongs to someone other than her.
Responding to a Reuters query about the
report, Laura Meltzer, a Las Vegas police spokeswoman, said in an email the
department is "taking the same steps in this case as in any other sexual
assault to facilitate the collection of DNA evidence. We can confirm that an
official request has been submitted to Italian authorities."
In response to a similar query, Ronaldo's
lawyer Peter Christiansen appeared to confirm the DNA request in a separate
statement.
"Mr. Ronaldo has always maintained, as
he does today, that what occurred in Las Vegas in 2009 was consensual in
nature, so it is not surprising that DNA would be present, nor that the police
would make this very standard request as part of their investigation," the
attorney said.
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