Cristiano Ronaldo Denies Allegations: 'Rape Is an Abominable Crime'

Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo has taken to social media again to deny allegations he sexually assaulted a woman in Las Vegas in 2009.

The 33-year-old called the allegations "fake news" on Instagram on Sunday, per Maya Oppenheim of The Independent. In a Twitter post on Wednesday, Ronaldo wrote that rape is "an abominable crime," and he believes an investigation will clear his name:

German magazine Der Spiegel first brought the allegations to light in 2017 and named the accuser as 34-year-old Kathryn Mayorga on Saturday.

Mayorga told Las Vegas police in June 2009 that a man had raped her at the Palms Hotel and Casino but did not name the alleged attacker, who was later revealed to be Ronaldo. The two parties subsequently agreed to a $375,000 settlement to prevent the allegations from becoming public.

A civil complaint has been filed in Mayorga's name against the non-disclosure agreement, which her legal representative believes to be "not legally binding." The complaint includes a 27-page document that reportedly features Ronaldo saying: "She said no and stop several times."

CNN reported the complaint says Ronaldo told Mayorga he was "sorry" and that he was "usually a gentleman" following the alleged attack.

Der Spiegel's reporting was described as "blatantly illegal" by a legal representative for Ronaldo in a statement.

According to A.J. Perez of USA Today on Monday, Las Vegas police have reopened an investigation into Mayorga's allegations. In a news release, Mayorga's lawyer said his client wanted to "obtain justice by holding Cristiano Ronaldo accountable for his conduct" by filing the lawsuit and seeking the reopening of the police investigation.

As reported by the Mirror's Michael McNiffe, Mayorga's legal team have announced a press conference for Wednesday in which they will reveal more details.