The Las Vegas police issued a warrant for Cristiano Ronaldo’s DNA on Wednesday in relation to an investigation regarding rape allegations made by Kathryn Mayorga dating back to 2009. Authorities want to see if Ronaldo’s DNA matches DNA on a dress owned by Mayorga, according to a law-enforcement source. The news was first reported by TMZ and later reported by the Wall Street Journal.
The warrant, these reports said, was sent on to the court system in Italy, where Ronaldo currently plies his trade with Juventus.
Wall Street Journal news: Las Vegas police issue warrant to Italy to obtain Cristiano Ronaldo's DNA in rape accusation case https://t.co/GXH9Jrk9BL
— Grant Wahl (@GrantWahl) January 10, 2019
The Portuguese star striker has been accused of rape by Mayorga, and Las Vegas police reopened a criminal investigation back in October. Mayorga had originally settled out of court with Ronaldo for $375,000 with a non-disclosure agreement in 2010.
Ronaldo has repeatedly denied the rape accusations, saying any sexual contact was consensual. His lawyers declined to comment on Wednesday. Mayorga’s lawyers and Las Vegas police also declined comment, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Authorities want to know if Ronaldo’s DNA matches that of the DNA on a dress of Mayorga’s from nine years ago. If and when the warrant is served in Italy, Ronaldo would have to supply the Italian police with a sample of DNA so Las Vegas police can compare the two samples. However, even matching DNA wouldn’t necessarily confirm anything, as Ronaldo has said there was consensual sex.
The alleged incident happened in 2009 when Ronaldo was 24 and was in the middle of transferring from Manchester United to Real Madrid.
The report comes shortly after Jasmine Lennard, a purported ex-girlfriend of Ronaldo, went on a Twitter tirade claiming mistreatment from Ronaldo. Lennard later deleted her account after providing inconclusive audio files as evidence.