Former Buffalo Bills player Matt Araiza will not be charged with allegations of taking part in a gang rape of a minor while visiting San Diego State. Araiza, a freshman, was released by the Bills after the allegations first surfaced publicly in August.
The San Diego County Attorney’s Office announced their decision Wednesday, saying that “prosecutors have determined that the evidence does not support the filing of criminal charges.”
“There is no pathway to a possible criminal conviction,” the DA statement said.
Former Bills punter Matt Araiza (pictured) will not be prosecuted on charges of participating in a gang rape of a minor while visiting San Diego state. Araiza, a freshman, was released by the Bills after the allegations first surfaced publicly in August
Dan Gilleon, who represented the plaintiff known as “Jane Doe,” responded to Wednesday’s news in a statement to by accusing the prosecutor’s office of firing his client because she was intoxicated.
“I’m never surprised when a prosecutor doesn’t press charges of sexual assault when the victim was intoxicated,” Gilleon’s testimony began. “It is a very rare occurrence for the criminal justice system to achieve anything satisfactory for the victim of a sexual assault.
“In the criminal system, the victim is just another witness. She is not represented by anyone. Prosecutors cannot bring charges unless they believe they can get a unanimous decision from all juries, who cannot vote for a conviction unless they are beyond a reasonable doubt.
Gilleon stated that he and his client are still pursuing their lawsuit against Araiza and the other defendants.
“The lawsuit that we have filed is not in the criminal justice system,” he said. “This is a different ball game. The victim is represented, and the focus is on the harm the defendants have caused her. It is only in the civil system that a victim of sexual assault can obtain justice, and that is what we plan to do.”
Araiza and two of his former San Diego State teammates were accused in a civil lawsuit in August of raping the teenager at an off-campus party in 2021 while the star punter was still playing for the Aztecs.
The lawsuit, filed in San Diego County Superior Court, alleges that Araiza, Zavier Leonard (right) and Nowlin ‘Pa’a’ Ewaliko (left) gang raped a then 17-year-old girl at a Halloween party at a house where Araiza lived would have
The lawsuit, filed in San Diego County Superior Court, alleges that Araiza, Zavier Leonard and Nowlin ‘Pa’a’ Ewaliko gang raped a then 17-year-old girl at a Halloween party at a house where Araiza had lived. Through his lawyer, Araiza has denied the allegations.
The plaintiff, now 18, is identified in the complaint as “Jane Doe” because she was a minor at the time.
According to the lawsuit received by , the teenager had been drinking with friends when they decided to go to the party on October 17. She was “visibly drunk on arrival”.
Jane Doe was then separated from her friends and approached by Araiza, who, according to the file, offered her a drink. She believes the drink contained “not only alcohol but also other intoxicating substances,” the complaint said.
She allegedly told Araiza that she was a high school grad before he led her to a side yard and asked her to perform oral sex.
The two had sex and he then took her to a bedroom in the home where at least three other men were, according to the complaint, including Leonard and Ewaliko. The lawsuit states that Araiza threw the teenager onto the bed and she passed out during the rape. It added: “She recalls some moments of the horrific gang rape.”
After an hour and a half, the teenager “stumbled out of the room bleeding and crying,” according to the complaint. Her nose, belly button and ear piercings had been pulled out.
She immediately told her friends about the rape and reported it to police the next day and underwent a rape investigation, according to the lawsuit. Officials trained her to call Araiza, which she did 10 days later when detectives recorded it, according to the complaint.
Buffalo Bills player Matthew Araiza told his 17-year-old rape accuser in a police-monitored phone call that she needed to be tested for chlamydia after an alleged hour-and-a-half assault that left her “bloody and crying.” ,” according to a court filing obtained by
During the call, Araiza admitted to having had sex with her, the lawsuit states, but later when she asked him, “And did we have real sex?” he replied: “This is Matt Araiza. I don’t remember anything that happened that night’ and hung up.
But before she hung up, Araiza urged Doe to get tested for chlamydia, according to the file.
“Araiza told Doe he tested positive for chlamydia, after which Doe was instructed to say, ‘So you know what I need to get tested for. Ok, I feel a little better then.”
“This was a horrific crime, as happens all too often,” Gilleon’s company told in an August statement. “What makes these crimes different isn’t just that they were committed by self-proclaimed athletes. Just as horrific as the crimes, multiple organizations — SDSU, the San Diego Police Department, the San Diego District Attorney, and now the Buffalo Bills — have played the role of enablers for months, looking the other way to deny my client deserves justice, even when the accused are valued athletes.’
Attorney Kerry Armstrong, who is representing Araiza in the criminal investigation, dismissed the allegations as untrue based on the findings of an investigator he hired.
“I don’t 100 percent believe he ever violently raped this girl or had sex with her while she was passed out or drunk or anything,” Armstrong told the AP. “It is unfortunate that she has filed a civil suit. I think it’s a money robbery.’
Buffalo Bills punter Matt Araiza waves to fans after a preseason NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts August 13 at Orchard Park, New York
Armstrong said the Bills were aware of the allegations and investigations against Araiza before the lawsuit was filed for providing the team updates since being withheld from the player about six weeks ago.
“Matt Araiza is very upset about this, as you can imagine. He’s very disappointed,” Armstrong said. “But he’ll eventually get his day in court.”
Finally, at the end of August, the team decided to cut ties with Araiza.
“This is bigger than football,” Bill’s GM Brandon Beane said at the time. “Our culture in Buffalo is more important than winning football games.
“We sympathize with this whole situation, everyone involved, this young woman and what she has been going through. Ultimately, this is a legal situation, we do not know all the facts. That makes it difficult.
“But at this point we just think the best move of all is to walk away from Matt and let him take care of this situation and focus on that. There we part ways.
“It is a very serious situation, serious nature and allegations. We don’t have the means to put the facts together. We try to do our best to be thoughtful and not judgmental.
Beane said the team was aware of Araiza’s side of the story before the allegations surfaced.
“How transparent was Matt? Matt gave us his version of events, that’s the point. There were a lot of things we couldn’t get our hands on with the resources we have.’
If an NFL team signed Araiza, he would not be subject to the league’s personal conduct policy regarding the rape allegation, which allegedly took place in 2021 before he was drafted.
Araiza, 22, who attended Rancho Bernardo High in San Diego, was SDSU’s most notable player during a school-record 12-2 season that ranked 25th in the final AP Top 25 poll. He routinely turned the field around with his stunning punts and set an NCAA-record 51.19 yards average. He won the Ray Guy Award and was a first-team AP All-American