Ronaldo not to face charges for alleged 2009 sexual assault incident
Portuguese international Cristiano Ronaldo will not face sexual assault charges for a June 2009 incident in the United States, attorneys say.
Clark County District Attorney today confirmed that there will be no prosecution process involving Juventus striker Cristiano Ronaldo in relation to an alleged 2009 rape.
The Clark County District Attorney's Office said police submitted the case for prosecution earlier this month, but that "based upon a review of the information presented at this time" the allegations against Cristiano Ronaldo "cannot be proven beyond a reasonable doubt."
"Therefore, no charges will be forthcoming," the office said in a statement.
Kathryn Mayorga reportedly accused Ronaldo of raping her in a hotel in the city of Las Vegas, with German publication Der Spiegel reporting the claims last October.
According to Der Spiegel, Mayorga first made a complaint of sexual assault in 2009 and subsequently reached an out-of-court settlement with Ronaldo. It was claimed by the magazine she was paid $375,000 as part of a privacy agreement, preventing her from going public with the allegations.
The Portuguese player's legal team described Der Spiegel's 2018 report as "blatantly illegal" and confirmed they will pursue action against the publication for "inadmissible reporting of suspicions in the area of privacy".
Innocent
Ronaldo has always maintained his innocence on the matter initially issuing a statement via social media when the case emerged in October 2018: He stated at the time: "I firmly deny the accusations being issued against me. Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in. Keen as I may be to clear my name, I refuse to feed the media spectacle created by people seeking to promote themselves at my expense.
"My clear conscious [sic] will thereby allow me to await with tranquillity the results of any and all investigations."