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Home / New Zealand

Privacy fears stop rugby sex scandal complaint

Elizabeth Binning
By Elizabeth Binning
Senior Journalist·NZ Herald·
4 Jul, 2008 05:00 PM3 mins to read

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KEY POINTS:

The woman who claims four England rugby players sexually violated her says she will not make a formal complaint to the police as doing so would threaten her privacy.

The 18-year-old is also refusing to deal directly with England's rugby union, which is investigating her allegations. She has
instead sent a letter through her lawyer giving her account of what happened to her.

The letter, which was given to the media yesterday afternoon, says the woman was invited back to the Hilton Hotel by a member of the England team on June 15.

She says four team members sexually violated and injured her in such a way that medical professionals from whom she later sought treatment referred her to the police.

The players - named in British media as Danny Care, David Strettle, Topsy Ojo and Mike Brown - have denied any wrongdoing.

The woman's lawyer, Jack Hodder, said there was no truth to speculation that she was a lapdancer and that her dealings with medical professionals were prompted by a boyfriend.

She also didn't know "Angel Barbie", the woman who sold her story about a one-night stand with an England rugby player on the same night as the alleged offending.

In the letter, Mr Hodder said the woman did not want to lay a formal complaint with the police.

"As you will appreciate, she anticipates that course would generate extensive and invasive news media, threaten her privacy and personal life and compound the impact on her of the June 15 sexual violations."

Referring to the investigation by England rugby authorities, the letter said: "For similar reasons, the victim does not wish to deal directly with your inquiry, but does seek to provide the essential context, as summarised above."

Detective Sergeant Andy King, from the Auckland City adult sexual abuse team, said police were still working through the investigation into the sexual violation allegations.

He was aware of the woman's letter to the England rugby management board.

Mr King said the fact the woman did not want to make a complaint at the moment did not matter as she might decide to in the future, which meant the investigation still had to be carried out.

But charges were unlikely to be laid at this stage because of the lack of a complaint and the accused were overseas. That could change if a formal complaint was laid.

The woman's letter said it would be her "first and final" public statement.

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