A Brisbane woman says she was left bleeding and abandoned with a fractured eye socket from an alleged assault by South Sydney NRL star Ben Te’o.
Te’o strongly denies the allegations and won’t be stood down by the Rabbitohs for their clash with Cronulla on Monday night.
The woman made an initial approach to police, who attended the scene of the alleged assault and, while those allegations have since been formally withdrawn, it is understood she is still considering whether to press charges.
The alleged assault took place on April 20, the night after the Australia-New Zealand Test was played in Canberra.
Te’o had been out at a popular nightclub with a Brisbane Broncos player, when it is understood the pair met up with a Newcastle player who was with the woman, and all four shared a cab back to the home of the Brisbane player.
It was at the home where the woman alleges she was hit by Te’o, when he entered a room where she was with the Newcastle player.
“Ben Te’o was at the door and I tried to get out. I had my shoe in my hand and I hit him on the shoulder,” the woman told the Nine Network.
“He punched me in the face, on my eye.
“He made a comment that I was a slut and I wasn’t very happy with that.”
The woman alleges Te’o continued to hit her while she was on the ground, and that all three players then left the house as she fell unconscious.
“After he hit me in the face, I fell down and curled into a ball and he just kept hitting me,” the woman said.
“I remember hearing (the Newcastle player) say ‘stop’ … and I must have gone unconscious.
“I remember coming to, just laying in the hallway, with blood everywhere.
“And just being scared. And there was no one there.
“…I could’ve been dead for all they knew.”
In a written statement, Te’o disputes acting improperly and it is understood he phoned police to report the incident.
The woman was then taken to Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital early on the Sunday morning, where she was treated for facial injuries.
Te’o informed the Rabbitohs of the incident on the following Monday, more than four weeks ago.
But the information only filtered through to NRL CEO David Smith late on Tuesday evening.
Smith was grilled over the timeline of events, but refused to answer whether he was satisfied with South Sydney’s actions in keeping the league informed of all developments.
It is an ugly scenario for the NRL to deal with in the days following their Women in League round, which celebrates the contributions of women at all levels of the game.
South Sydney chief executive Shane Richardson said the decision not to stand down the 26-year-old had not been made with competition points in mind.
“Us not standing him down has got nothing to do with us winning the game against Cronulla on Monday night,” Richardson said.
“It’s got everything to do with the process involved.”
Te’o released a statement maintaining his innocence.
“I have not been informed of the exact nature of the news story, however I am able to refute entirely any suggestion that I acted improperly,” the Queensland State of Origin forward said.
“I found myself in unfortunate circumstances that were not caused by me and I acted appropriately to deal with a difficult situation.”
Te’o was stood down from South Sydney’s pre-season trial match with Newcastle after breaking team protocol but, otherwise, Richardson said he’d not put a foot wrong since joining the club in the off-season.
An independent investigator has been enlisted to assist the NRL’s integrity unit, who will investigate the matter.
Smith said that process had begun on Wednesday morning, and he was not prepared to put a timeframe on when it might be completed.
“If it turns out to be true, then clearly we will take the necessary action,” Smith said.
Brisbane officials issued a statement early on Wednesday evening clearing their player – who they named as Corey Norman – in relation to the alleged assault.
The statement said the player had notified the Broncos at the time of the alleged incident and the club responded by immediately following up with police, who had assured them the player had cooperated fully and had done nothing wrong.
“We have been further informed by police there were no further investigations continuing from the alleged incident,” the statement said.
“The club therefore feels it does not have anything else to add to this matter but will support any future investigations.”
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