Christano Ronaldo sexual assault case reopened

Christiano Ronaldo sexual assault case reopened

By CIARA FARRELL Staff Writer

This past week detectives have been looking into a near decade old assault case that involves highly esteemed soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo. The complainant, 34– year–old Kathryn Mayorga, alleges that she met Ronaldo at a Vegas nightclub in late 2009. They exchanged numbers, and he invited her and her friends to a private party in his penthouse later that night. It was there that she says he got her alone, exposed himself, and then proceeded to sexually assault her. Despite repeatedly telling him “no” and “stop,” he continued. Afterwards, Mayorga claims that Ronaldo immediately apologized for his actions, saying that he is usually a gentleman, but he had failed to live up to that standard. He then allowed her to leave. Just hours later, Mayorga was hospitalized due to her injuries sustained in the assault (https://www. si.com/soccer/2018/10/02/ cristiano-ronaldo-rape-allegations-kathryn-mayorga-legal-case). Photographs in the medical report show injuries consistent with the trauma she endured.

However, even in those early days, Mayorga says that people were discouraging her from coming forward. The nurse in her examination room said that she should not try to press charges, that she would be seen as someone lying to extort money from the successful athlete (https://www. msn.com/en-us/sports/ soccer/american-woman-sues-cristiano-ronaldo-accuses-him-of-rape/ ar-BBNLHEE?OCID=ansmsnnews11). Mayorga immediately reported her assault to the police but was hesitant to reveal the identity of her attacker for fear of public retaliation. It took her weeks to give police his name. This was to no avail. The detective gave her the same story that the nurse had: she was going to be seen as an extortionist and a liar. This trend continued once she filed a lawsuit against Ronaldo, where she cited claims of battery, inflicting emotional distress, coercion and fraud and abuse of a vulnerable person. Ronaldo’s team allegedly hired a group of “reputation protection specialists,” whose sole purpose was to protect Ronaldo and slander Mayorga’s character by making her seem like a mendacious complainant. With pressure coming at her from all sides to give up her case, she eventually settled for $375,000 and agreed to silence.

Mayorga has now reopened her lawsuit case and is seeking to void that settlement and agreement. In April of 2017, details from her previous lawsuit and non–disclosure agreement were leaked. These documents included statements from both teams, but simply identify Mayorga as “Susan K.” Ronaldo’s team has said that the reports and the consequent articles written about them are “journalistic falsifications,” but has made no attempt to take the site to court (http://www. spiegel.de/international/cristiano-ronaldo-kathryn-mayorga-the-woman-who-accuses-ronaldo-of-rape-a-1230634. html).

It is unclear which way this case will go, but Mayorga hopes that with her new lawyer and the renewed vigor for women’s rights that has taken root with the “#metoo” movement, she will be able to finally voice her experience and hopefully help other women in the process.