Robert Kraft's Charge Dropped After Massage Parlor Video Blocked by Judge

Florida prosecutors dropped a charge of paying for a sex act against New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft on Thursday related to a January 2019 visit to a spa in Jupiter, Florida. 

Terry Spencer of the Associated Press reported prosecutors decided against moving forward with the charge after the Florida 4th District Court of Appeal blocked the use of key evidence—a video allegedly showing Kraft engaging in a sex act with a woman and paying for it—if the case went to trial.

The recordings are the "only known evidence" against Kraft and the over 100 other individuals who were accused in February 2019 of paying for sex acts at day spas in central Florida, per Spencer.

Kraft's lawyers have filed a separate motion for all of the videos to be destroyed so they can never be leaked to the public and offered to pay Florida's legal costs if such a ruling is made and challenged in court, according to Spencer.

The court of appeal found that the videotaping represented an "extreme" tactic to obtain evidence and "the cameras' installation didn't sufficiently protect the privacy of innocent customers who received legal massages," per Spencer.

Kraft would have likely been sentenced to community service and other sanctions along with a fine if found guilty, per Spencer. He could still face punishment from the NFL under its personal-conduct policy.

The 79-year-old Massachusetts native released a statement of apology in March 2019:

The charge against Kraft was based on evidence obtained on the day before and the day of that year's AFC Championship Game.

The Patriots went on to win the Super Bowl, their sixth championship since Kraft purchased ownership of the NFL franchise in 1994.