Ronaldo: I am not a rapist, my conscience is clear
FOOTBALL star Cristiano Ronaldo yesterday hit out at allegations he raped a former model in a Las Vegas hotel.
He “firmly” denied carrying out a sex attack on Kathryn Mayorga, 34, and vowed to clear his name.
Ronaldo, 33, said: “Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in.
“I firmly deny the accusations being issued against me.”
In a message to his 24.9 million followers on Twitter written in English and his native Portuguese, the Juventus player added: “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 will thereby allow me to await with tranquillity the results of any and all investigations.”
The former Manchester United forward spoke out as more details are set to emerge over the alleged assault in June 2009 as the footballer prepared to leave Old Trafford after six years.
He had previously dismissed the claims as “fake news”.
On Monday, Las Vegas police said an incident report was filed on the night of the alleged attack and confirmed the case has now been re-opened. Detectives said they are “following up on information being provided by the alleged victim”.
In a civil lawsuit filed at a district court in Clark County, Nevada, last week Ms Mayorga, who is a teacher, told how she met Ronaldo at Rain nightclub, when she was aged 25.
She claims she was among a group who went to the five-time Fifa World Player of the Year’s penthouse suite at the Palms Casino Resort where the alleged attack happened in a bedroom.
Ms Mayorga said she accepted a £270,000 hush money settlement at the time.
She claims Ronaldo dispatched a team of “fixers” to obstruct the criminal investigation and trick her into keeping quiet.
Her lawyers want to declare the non-disclosure agreement void and she is seeking damages.
Ronaldo is one of the world’s richest sportsmen worth an estimated £300million. He is dating Spanish model Georgina Rodriguez, 23, who posted “I love you Cristiano” adding he was always able to “transform the obstacles” put in his way.