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UPDATE: Jarryd Hayne breaks his silence on alleged Hells Angels link

12th September, 2016
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Jarryd Hayne is in the headlines for the wrong reasons again. (AAP Image/Dave Hunt)
12th September, 2016
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The curse of the rugby league star has struck again, with Gold Coast Titans marquee signing Jarryd Hayne under investigation from the NRL’s Integrity Unit after footage emerged on Snapchat of him with an alleged Hells Angels member, however Hayne has vehemently denied he knows the man

The Snapchat footage, which was obtained by News Limited, showed Hayne partying with former Titans’ under-20s player Chris Bloomfield following Gold Coast’s season-ending loss to the Broncos last Friday night, with the former Parramatta star appearing to give Bloomfield a wad of cash.

“Haynesy just gave me five grand,” the alleged Hells Angels enforcer says in the video, holding up a stack of $50 notes.

It seems that Hayne’s response is nonchalant. “Cash money fam, cash money. Give me a f … ing cigarette.”

However, in a recent update to the story, Hayne has released a statement saying he had never previously met Bloomfield, that he did not give the alleged bikie enforcer the money in the footage, and that it wasn’t his voice asking for a cigarette.

“Over the weekend I was out with a group of players and friends for some end of footy season drinks. There were some people there that I knew and some people there I didn’t know, including Chris Bloomfield who I met for the first time,” the statement read.

“As any human would do, I said hello to those I came into contact with and was friendly as normal. I understand Bloomfield filmed a few short Snapchat videos of me rapping to an Eminem song. At the time, I was not aware of this person’s history with the law and alleged bikie affiliations.

“I also want to make it very clear that a comment in the video which suggested I supplied Chris with a large sum of money is not true. This money was not mine.

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“This was a prank initiated by Bloomfield and was not intended to be taken seriously. It was also not my voice shouting for a cigarette and I was not involved with any of the offensive comments subsequently added to this video.”

Hayne’s manager Wayne Beavis had come out earlier in the day to defend the integrity of his client.

“I’ve spoken to Jarryd and he said ‘it was just beers with the boys’,” Beavis told News Corp.

“The money’s not his, he would never be walking around with five grand in his pocket.

“He says he doesn’t even know the bloke. They aren’t even mates. He just happened to be there.”

Also coming to the defence of Hayne was Queensland league legend and current Titans ambassador, Gordon Tallis.

“The bloke had the money in his pocket or something like that… and then basically he just happened,” Tallis said to Triple M Brisbane.

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Tallis claimed Hayne would not have realised the situation he had been put in.

On top of being an alleged member of the Hells Angels bikie group, Bloomfield is currently facing extortion, assault and stealing charges at Southport District Court. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Hayne is not the only NRL player in hot water thanks to his association with Bloomfield, with former Titans player Nene McDonald also under investigation from the Integrity Unit thanks to a photo of him with Bloomfield on Instagram.

“The Integrity Unit is aware of the video and we will investigate the matter which involves both players,” an NRL spokesman said.

Gold Coast released a statement on Tuesday morning.

“The Gold Coast Titans and the NRL Integrity Unit have been made aware of a video that is circulating which features Titans player Jarryd Hayne and briefly Nene Macdonald,” the statement read.

“We are liaising with the Integrity Unit and the players over the matter and have no further comment until those discussions are completed.”

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The incident is not the first time this year an NRL player has come under scrutiny for meeting with criminal figures.

Cronulla Sharks star Andrew Fifita was the focus of much outrage after his public show of support for one-punch killer Kieran Loveridge. On top of visiting Loveridge in jail, Fifita wore strapping with the letter “FKL,” which allegedly stood for “for Kieran Loveridge.”

Loveridge is currently serving a 10-year sentence for the manslaughter of Thomas Kelly back in 2012. Fifita denied the letters “referred in any way” to Loveridge being freed.

Parramatta star Corey Norman also caused a stir early in the year when teammate Junior Paulo posted a picture of Norman and the Panthers’ James Segeyaro dining with a number of accused criminals on Instagram.

This latest incident also isn’t the first time Hayne has come under scrutiny for the company he keeps, with the Daily Telegraph reporting the former NFL convert has already been warned by the Integrity Unit for consorting with known and accused criminals.

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