- Video
-
Club Roar
Captured a great grassroots sporting moment? We want to see it!Content Collections
The Roar Community
- Join
- Login
Australian code-hopping sports star Jarryd Hayne has been accused of rape during his brief stint in the NFL with the San Francisco 49ers in a US civil court, as reported by the Mercury News.
It has been alleged the incident took place in December 2015, although it wasn’t reported to the police until April the following year.
The case has been filed in the Santa Clara County court, but is being dealt with as a civil matter rather than a criminal one. The case had previously been reviewed by the District Attorney’s Office in Santa Clara County but was thrown out on October 25 last year due to there being insufficient evidence.
The office didn’t elaborate on why the case was rejected, stating only that there wasn’t enough evidence to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt.
According to the civil suit filed this week and heard overnight, the plaintiff was a virgin at the time and was afraid to come forward for several months. It was eventually reported to law enforcement when she sought out medical treatment and the hospital contacted police, as required by law.
The suit also includes claims of sexual battery, gender violence, infliction of emotional distress and negligence.
Hayne has denied the allegations, with Ramy Qutami from Madison Marcus Law Firm issuing the following statement on Wednesday evening:
“We act for Mr Jarryd Hayne. We are instructed to issue the statement below: Mr Hayne and his management are aware of recent media speculation in relation to a civil complaint filed in the United States of America making certain allegations in relation to an event which allegedly occurred in 2015 whilst playing for the San Francisco 49ers.
“Mr Hayne has not been served with any proceedings or formal complaint relating to the incident.
“Mr Hayne previously addressed a complaint made to the District Attorney’s office in the County of Santa Clara, California in 2016 and the District Attorney did not proceed any further with the matter due to insufficient evidence to substantiate the allegations. Mr Hayne provided all reasonable assistance to the District Attorney with that investigation.
“Mr Hayne unequivocally and vehemently denies the allegations which are the subject of the civil complaint. Mr Hayne will not be making any further comment in relation to this matter.”
Hayne’s stint with the 49ers ended in May 2016. It is not suggested he left the NFL and America due to the police investigation which was then taking place.
The NRL’s integrity unit is monitoring the situation, according to a statement made to NRL.com.
“We note that the police in the United States did not proceed with any criminal proceedings but we will review the information available and continue to monitor the civil case,” an NRL spokesman said.
Hayne is currently back in the NRL and is due to link up with the Parramatta Eels in 2018. He had previously spendt two years with the Gold Coast Titans upon his return to Australia after stints in the NFL and with Fiji’s rugby sevens team.
Reckon you can pick the winning team? Build your own dream team with Draftstars daily fantasy and compete on any match. For great odds on the NRL head on over to PlayUp. Imagine what you could be buying instead. Set a deposit limit.