New York Yankees legend Mariano Rivera and his wife Clara broke their silence Thursday after being named in a lawsuit and accused of covering up child sexual abuse of a minor in their home and at a camp. been linked to their church.
Joseph A. Ruta, their attorney, said in a statement that the first they heard of the allegations was in 2022, four years after the alleged incident. The alleged victim’s lawyer then requested a financial settlement.
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Mariano Rivera and his wife have faced surprising allegations. (IMAGINE)
“Mariano and Clara Rivera do not tolerate any form of child abuse and allegations that they knew of or failed to act on reports of child abuse are completely false,” the statement reads. press release from the New York Post. “The very first time they heard of these allegations was nearly four years after the alleged incident, when in 2022, a New York lawyer sent a letter seeking a financial settlement. This letter was followed by a second letter in 2023, from another Florida law firm, again requesting a financial settlement.
“The lawsuit, which seeks financial damages for the Riveras’ alleged failure to respond to alleged incidents that were never reported to them, is filled with inaccurate and misleading statements that we are confident cannot not be held in court.”
In the lawsuit, a woman identified as “Jane Doe” said she was sexually assaulted by an older girl known as “MG” during a summer internship in 2018. MG was a minor at the time of the alleged incidents . The internship took place at the Ignite Life Center in Gainesville, Florida, affiliated with Rivera’s church.
The suit said the alleged victim’s mother told Clara about the abuse and Clara promised to investigate the matter. However, they allegedly covered it up.
Former New York Yankees pitcher Mariano Rivera salutes Old Timer’s Day before the game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Yankee Stadium in New York on September 9, 2023. (Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports)
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“Rather than taking sufficient action to stop Jane Doe’s sexual abuse, the Riveras each separately isolated and intimidated Jane Doe into remaining silent about her abuse at the hands of MG in order to avoid causing harm. problems at the Refuge of Hope and the Ignite Life summer camp,” the suit reads. read.
The suit also alleged that MG abused the victim at the Rivera residence in Rye, New York, that summer during a barbecue.
“At any relevant time, [the Riveras] knew or should have known that MG posed a risk of child sexual abuse…before and during the barbecue,” the complaint states.
“In order to avoid the potential scandal of child sexual abuse in its programs and to otherwise protect [themselves] above all, the Riveras… assured [Doe’s mother] that [Doe] was safe and secure at the Ignite Life Center, despite actual or constructive knowledge that Doe remained vulnerable to further acts of sexual abuse by MG.
Several months later, in January 2019, Rivera became the first and still only player to be unanimously elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Later that year, President Donald Trump, during his first presidency, awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Mariano Rivera waves to the crowd from the mound after breaking the career save record during a game against the Minnesota Twins on Monday, September 19, 2011, at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx borough of Manhattan, New York. The Yankees beat the Twins 6-4 and Rivera recorded his 602nd career save. (Rob Tringali/MLB via Getty Images)
Rivera, widely known as the greatest fielder in baseball history, is the all-time leader in saves with 652. His 2.21 ERA is also the lowest of any pitcher with at least 500 innings since the start of the live ball era in 1920.
