Las Vegas Rape Lawsuit Against Cristiano Ronaldo Dismissed

Former model Kathryn Mayorga accused Ronaldo of raping her in 2009 in a Las Vegas hotel. According to Ronaldo's lawyers, the issue was settled out of court, with Mayorga receiving $375,000 in hush money and signing a non-disclosure agreement.

A US court has dismissed a rape lawsuit against football star Cristiano Ronaldo.

US District Judge Jennifer Dorsey in Las Vegas dismissed the case with no option to file it again, adding that the world-famous football star was "harmed" by the conduct of Mayorga's attorney, Leslie Mark Stovall. The judge explained that Stovall inappropriately based the civil damages lawsuit on leaked and stolen documents that were private communications between Ronaldo and his lawyers.

The judge explained that Stovall inappropriately based the civil damages lawsuit on leaked and stolen documents that were private communications between Ronaldo and his lawyers.

"I find that the procurement and continued use of these documents was bad faith, and simply disqualifying Stovall will not cure the prejudice to Ronaldo because the misappropriated documents and their confidential contents have been woven into the very fabric of (plaintiff Kathryn) Mayorga's claims...Harsh sanctions are merited", the ruling said.

Kathryn Mayorga, 37, a model from Nevada, filed a civil lawsuit against Ronaldo in 2018. Although the incident she referred to as "sexual assault" took place in 2009 and - moreover - she was paid by Ronaldo $375,000 in hush money, her legal team insisted that the incident left her with post-traumatic stress disorder and that she settled the issue out of court because she was "under duress". Mayorga was reportedly seeking $79 million in damages for the "past pain and suffering". Ronaldo admitted that he had sex with Mayorga, but strongly denied sexual abuse accusations, stressing that the intercourse was consensual.