Premier League football figurehead charged with raping two teenage girls

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A Premier League football figurehead who was recently questioned by police over a rape allegation was at the center of another investigation into a separate allegation that he raped a 15-year-old girl, according to an investigation by The Athletic.

As detectives continue to look into the ongoing complaint, it emerged he was simultaneously being investigated by a second police force for an alleged rape and a possible child sex offense in the 1990s.

The second alleged victim, known as Woman B, contacted the relevant police towards the end of 2021 and her complaint was forwarded to their specialist unit to investigate sex offenses against those under the age of 16. She alleged that the rape took place in the man’s home.

However, detectives investigating Woman Bs’ complaint realized she was affected by a little-known legal anomaly under the Sexual Offenses Act 1956, the legislation of the then British Parliaments for England and Wales, which children’s charity NSPCC (National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children) described as devastating and heartbreaking for those it works against.

The police informed Woman B that she had waited too long to report the matter, as the law states that if the alleged offense took place between 1956 and 2004 and the alleged victim was a girl between the ages of 13 and 15, she must file a complaint within one year. The time limit was dropped when the Sexual Offenses Act 2003 came into force in May 2004, but still applied if the alleged assault had occurred within the previous 48 years. The legislation only applies to girls between the ages of 13 and 15, not to boys.

After what police described as a complex investigation, a decision was made by the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) that no further action be taken in the case of Woman B. The man was not arrested and the case was left on file.

Victims of alleged sex offenses are granted lifetime anonymity under UK law. The man’s identity is known to The Athletic but cannot be reported due to confidentiality rules in the UK to grant anonymity to suspects in the early stages of a police investigation.

These rules remain in place unless the person concerned is charged with a criminal offence, in which case they may be named. Otherwise, any media outlet that publishes identifying details of that person may be open to privacy action.

Read more: What we can and cannot report when a footballer is arrested

On this condition of anonymity, the man voluntarily went to the police station on June 12, accompanied by a lawyer, to respond to Woman A’s continuing allegation that he had committed a non-recent rape. He was questioned on bail but was not arrested.

Woman A’s age was not revealed, nor was it mentioned in a statement released by London’s Metropolitan Police.

On Thursday, September 23, 2021, the Met received a crime report regarding a historic rape allegation, it read. On Monday June 12, a man (age redacted) was questioned on bail.

Athletic have repeatedly asked the Met to clarify Woman A’s age at the time of the alleged offence. However, the force declined to comment, other than to state that she was then a teenager.

His age matters for a number of reasons, including the charges that could be brought against the CPS when deciding whether the alleged abuser should be brought to trial.

But it’s also relevant because if the Football Association knows that a person in the sport has been accused of child sex offenses making that person, in theory, a potential risk to girls or boys of a certain age, they have the power to suspend that person under their safeguard procedures.

We have strong safeguards in place and all referrals directed to us are handled in accordance with our policies and procedures, an FA spokesperson said in a statement. We investigate and assess all allegations and concerns about people who could harm children and adults in football and, where appropriate, may impose proportionate protective measures in accordance with FA protective regulations. We do not comment on individual cases.

The man in question continues to work in football and has not been subject to these measures.

His case involving Woman A and the Metropolitan Police is still ongoing, while the separate investigation involving the 15-year-old in another part of the country has been dormant since the decision not to press charges.

Following a complex initial investigation and consultation with the Crown, no arrests were made and no charges were brought, read a statement from the police who handled Woman B’s complaint (the name of the force cannot be mentioned for legal reasons). No investigation is ever closed and if new investigative leads emerge, the investigation may be reconsidered.

If you want to speak to someone who has read this article, you can call Samaritans in the UK free of charge anytime, from any phone, on 116 123.

(Top photo: Joe Prior/Visionhaus via Getty Images)

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