Former Bills punter Matt Araiza is set to sue his accuser for defamation after rape allegations. Here’s what we know

Nothing is ever as it seems and though we were initially told that the former Bills player was involved in the group sexual assault of a girl, it was later reported that he wasn’t in the room. Now it seems that he intends to push back.

Matt Araiza set to sue for defamation

According to reports, former Bills punter Matt Araiza has said that he is going to sue attorney Dan Gilleon for defamation. Araiza’s intentions are of course linked to the civil lawsuit filed by Gilleon that alleged Araiza took part in a gang rape last year. Araiza revealed his plans during a recent interview on Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel that was aired on Tuesday night. In case you missed our previous report, Araiza was named in a civil suit that alleged that he along with two of his former San Diego football teammates raped a 17-year-old girl at a house party near the school’s campus in the fall of 2021.

Interestingly, Araiza also spoke about the situation with HBO’s Andrea Kremer, to who he explained that he has in fact retained an attorney, and moreover would not be waiving his right to make any claims against Gilleon or the plaintiff in the event that the claims against him reach a settlement. It’s definitely worth mentioning that back in December of last year, the San Diego District Attorney’s office did not proceed with charges against Araiza after an investigation determined that he was not in the room when the alleged sexual assault occurred.

Dan Gilleon responds to Matt Araiza’s intention to sue

As they say, ‘There are two sides to every coin.’ In keeping with that, it’s no surprise that Gilleon himself was also interviewed by HBO, and he was quick to make it clear that even if Araiza was not present at the time of the attack, it “doesn’t absolve him of liability.” Indeed, Gilleon went on to allege that Araiza and others purposefully got the plaintiff drunk with the intention of having sex with her. He also posits the theory that Araiza and other people allegedly purposefully got the plaintiff drunk that night in order to have sex with her, however, as per reports that assertion does not appear in the civil complaint filed back in August.

“Our allegation is, is he contributed heavily to the harm that she suffered that night,” Gilleon said. “He had sex with my client. Following that, she ended up having sex with multiple guys and came out of there bloodied, in shock. Ended up at the hospital, ended up with the police, and ended up traumatized. So that’s what I mean by the gang rape. Gang rapes can occur for two days. They can occur over time. They can occur in multiple places. So that’s the clarification.” When confronted with the idea that his claims were different from what appeared in the civil complaint, Gilleon doubled down. “I don’t know. I think my client is going to get on the stand and tell a story that’s pretty ugly about Matt Araiza,” Gilleon said. “And I think it’s going to be consistent with what that complaint is.”