Numerous allegations claim that legendary New York Yankees closer Mariano Rivera and his wife, Clara, ignored a kid being sexually abused at a church and in their home.
The allegations were made in a complaint brought by Jane Doe, who says that while working as a summer intern at the Ignite Life Center in Gainesville, Florida, in 2018, she was mistreated by an older female known as MG. Ignite Life is connected to Rivera’s church, according to FOX.
According to the New York Post, Rivera, 55, refuted the charges in a statement released by his attorney, Joseph A. Ruta.
According to the statement, Mariano and Clara Rivera do not condone any form of child abuse, and any claims that they were aware of or did nothing in response to child abuse reports are wholly untrue. They were first made aware of these claims in 2022, almost four years after the claimed assault, when a New York lawyer wrote to ask for a monetary settlement. A second letter requesting a cash settlement was sent in 2023 by a different Florida law firm.
The case, according to Ruta, is full of false and deceptive claims that we are certain will not stand up in a court of law. It demands monetary damages for the Riveras’ alleged failure to take action on instances that were never reported to them.
According to the lawsuit, the girl told Clara about the assault, and she promised to look into it, according to FOX. She says it was covered up instead.
The lawsuit claims that instead of taking the necessary steps to stop Jane Doe’s sexual abuse, the Riveras individually isolated Jane Doe and threatened to keep her quiet about MG’s abuse in order to keep Refuge of Hope and the Ignite Life Summer Internship out of trouble, according to FOX.
According to FOX, the lawsuit alleges that the Riveras should have known that MG posed a risk of sexually abusing minors. Jane Doe also claims that MG mistreated her during a summer cookout at the Rivera residence.
“The Riveras assured (Doe’s mother) that (Doe) was safe and in no danger at Ignite Life Center, despite actual or constructive knowledge that (Doe) remained vulnerable to additional acts of sexual abuse by MG,” the lawsuit states, “in order to avoid the potential scandal of child abuse in its programs and otherwise protect (themselves) above all else.”
According to FOX, Rivera became the first and only player to be unanimously elected into the National Baseball Hall of Fame a few months after the alleged incidents.
With 652, Rivera, who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Donald Trump, holds the record for most saves in Major League Baseball history. Before retiring after the 2013 season, he played his whole career with the Yankees, where he made his major league debut in 1995.
He won the World Series five times and was named an All-Star thirteen times. He won the 1999 World Series MVP award.