Lawsuit accuses Bills punter of participating in gang rape of teen
Buffalo Bills rookie punter Matt Araiza is among three former and current San Diego State football players named in a lawsuit accusing them of participating in the gang rape of a minor.
The incident allegedly happened during a party last October at Araiza’s off-campus residence. The San Diego County district attorney’s office is weighing evidence recently submitted by detectives to determine whether to file charges, according to the Los Angeles Times. No arrests have been made.
According to the lawsuit, the complainant, then 17 and identified in a California Superior Court filing as Jane Doe, went out with friends to find pre-halloween parties. The address of the event in question had been posted on Snapchat, the filing says, and by the time Doe and her companions arrived she was “observably intoxicated.”
Araiza, then 21, handed Doe a drink that allegedly contained not just alcohol but “other intoxicating substances,” according to the lawsuit. After learning from Doe that she was a high school student and thus likely to have been a minor, per the lawsuit, he is accused of leading her to a secluded area to engage in sexual intercourse. Araiza then brought her to a room that already had three men in it, according to the filing, including the two other named defendants, Zavier Leonard and Nowlin (Pa’a) Ewaliko. Leonard and Ewaliko are both listed on the Aztecs’ roster. The lawsuit says both were about 18 at the time of the party.
According to the lawsuit, Doe “went in and out of consciousness while she was being raped.” She remembered several men having sex with her. Within two days, she reported the episode to police.