Cristiano Ronaldo is a free man after a US judge dismissed a rape allegation lawsuit against him.
The lawsuit has now been dismissed because the accuser’s lawyer relied on leaked and stolen records.
The allegations have been ongoing since 2009 after Kathryn Mayorga claimed that the Manchester United footballer raped her at a Las Vegas hotel in 2009 with the girl reaching an out-of-court settlement with the star in 2010, but has been seeking millions more than the $375,000 she received.
Leslie Stovall, the girls lawyer, received “ill-gotten” information and documents which were confidential and privileged, US District Judge Jennifer Dorsey wrote.
Ms Mayorga said that while she had agreed to the settlement shortly after the alleged incident, her emotional trauma at the time did not allow her to participate in the mediation process, and she felt pressured to accept the offer.
The judge said the lawyer harmed Mr Ronaldo, 37, by conducting himself in “bad faith” through repeated use of stolen, privileged documents to prosecute the case.
In a 42-page ruling released on Friday and quoted by AFP, Judge Dorsey accused Mr Stovall of “abuses and flagrant circumvention of the proper litigation process” and said that as a result, “Mayorga loses her opportunity to pursue this case.”
