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Brisbane youngster David Fifita will not face any disciplinary action for the incident in Bali which left him inside a police cell.
The 19-year-old spent three days inside a cell last month after the incident outside a nightclub on the Indonesian island where he allegedly assaulted a security guard.
Fifita returned to Brisbane after successfully negotiating his release alongside officials from the Broncos, with reports the Queensland State of Origin forward paid up to $30,000 to his accuser to secure his freedom.
On Thursday the NRL issued a brief statement stating the evidence surrounding the assault was inconclusive and deeming the actions of the Broncos to be appropriate.
“It is important that our determinations are based on the evidence before us,” NRL chief executive Todd Greenberg said.
“In this case, after analysing a multitude of evidence we cannot say with certainty that a breach has occurred.”
The Broncos welcomed the NRL integrity unit’s findings and said Fifita would also not be facing any club-based sanctions for the alleged incident.
“David will pull on a Broncos jersey to play round one and we feel that is a fair result for him and for the club,” Broncos chief executive Paul White said.
“We trust David’s version of events in that he did not commit an assault, but we understand that the Integrity Unit had a job to do.
“We have respected that process from the very start and cooperated every step of the way.”
The Broncos board also reviewed the club’s handling of the affair with an independent review by a Brisbane law firm endorsing the club’s actions.
“Our main focus was to ensure David returned home safely and we were able to work together to achieve that – and the NRL has found that we acted appropriately in at-times challenging circumstances,” White said.
The club’s support of Fifita through the ordeal is likely to be repaid with reports the highly-rated teenager will reject big money offers from multiple NRL clubs to re-sign with the Broncos.
Fifita has been linked with Canterbury, the Sydney Roosters, Parramatta and Gold Coast but Queensland coach Kevin Walters is among those that believe he will stay at Red Hill.
© AAP
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