Any car, any house, any executive jet. Indeed, any number of made-to-order surrogate children. Cristiano Ronaldo, footballer turned global brand, the ‘galactico’ with a galactic fortune — some £350 million and counting — can have it all.
Except apparently the silence he allegedly tried — and failed — to buy of the woman who accuses him of rape.
The striker, recruited this year at the age of 33 by Juventus following a glittering career that has taken in Manchester United and Real Madrid, is now facing the possibility of being tried for rape in the U.S. state of Nevada.
It follows the claim from former hotel hostess Kathryn Mayorga that the Portugal captain raped her in his £770-a-night penthouse room at the Hotel Palms Place in Las Vegas in 2009.
The claims were first published by the German magazine, Der Spiegel. Ronaldo’s lawyers have said they will sue the publication.
In a statement, Ronaldo’s lawyer Christian Schertz said ‘the reporting in Spiegel is blatantly illegal’. He has added that he had been instructed to seek compensation for ‘moral damages’ over ‘probably one of the most serious violations of personal rights in recent years’.
In a lengthy and detailed interview, Miss Mayorga told the German news magazine Der Spiegel how Ronaldo apologised after forcing himself upon her despite repeated rejections.
She says he went ‘down on his knees and said: ‘‘Ninety-nine per cent of me is a good guy, I just don’t know about the other one per cent.’’ ’
Claiming to have suffered years of mental torment and suicidal thoughts as a result, Miss Mayorga says Ronaldo’s lawyers purchased her silence in 2010 with a £288,000 out-of-court settlement, something she now regrets.
Prior to the settlement, the magazine cites documents claiming that U.S. lawyers hired a private detective to follow Miss Mayorga and ‘dig up dirt’, watching her house, following her and finding out information about her parking tickets.
She also claims his lawyers tried to ‘discredit’ her, saying that her hostess job was not a ‘good girl’ job’.
As part of the settlement, Ronaldo’s legal team reportedly insisted that Miss Mayorga be prohibited from mentioning the player even to her therapist. If the allegation is proven, that ‘one per cent’ of flawed character will be fatal for a player used to having the world at his feet.
As the cases of Bill Cosby and Harvey Weinstein show, fame, wealth and passage of time are now no deterrent to women seeking redress for sexual offences.
According to Der Spiegel, Miss Mayorga, now 34, contacted police shortly after the alleged attack but initially refused to identify her assailant. She then decided not to pursue it through the criminal system and chose the civil path, and a settlement.
Yesterday, Ronaldo, a father of four, counter-attacked, accusing Miss Mayorga of peddling ‘fake, fake news’, while his lawyer in Germany promised legal action against Der Spiegel.
-Dailymail