Jameis Winston on Friday released a statement in response to a sexual assault allegation he is being faced with.
Earlier on Friday, BuzzFeed News said that Winston was being investigated by the NFL for an allegation of sexual assault made by a woman who says she drove the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback in March, 2016. The woman accuses Winston of grabbing her crotch without permission after she picked him up in an Uber in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Here’s Winston’s response.
“A news organization has published a story about me regarding an alleged incident involving a female Uber driver from approximately two years ago. The story falsely accuses me of making inappropriate contact with this driver. I believe the driver was confused as to the number of passengers in the car and who was sitting next to her. The accusation is false, and given the nature of the allegation and increased awareness and consideration of these types of matters, I am addressing this false report immediately. At the time of the alleged incident, I denied the allegations to Uber, yet they still decided to suspend my account,” Winston said in a statement shared by Adam Schefter.
“I am supportive of the national movement to raise awareness and develop better responses to the concerns of parties who find themselves in these types of situations, but this accusation is false. While I am certain that I did not make any inappropriate contact, I don’t want to engage in a battle with the driver and I regret if my demeanor or presence made her uncomfortable in any way.”
Winston’s mention of “demeanor or presence” making her uncomfortable seems to be a reference to the woman noting Winston’s large physical stature in her allegation. He also acknowledged having his Uber account suspended as a result and seems to indicate he was not sitting next to the woman. The Bucs QB seems to lump the accusation together with the multitude of women coming forward with sexual assault accusations that began with the Harvey Weinstein case.
Winston went through a highly publicized case in college when he was accused of raping a student in 2012. He settled the civil suit out of court.
