The San Diego Police Department announced Thursday that it has completed a 10-month investigation into the alleged gang rape of an unconscious teen girl by members of the San Diego State football team.
No arrests have been made in the “very complex” case, according to police, who said they had submitted the results of their probe to the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office for review and the possible filing of criminal charges.
Five university football players purportedly carried out the attack on the girl, 17, during an off-campus house party last Oct. 16.
The SDPD announcement – which included no details about the results of the lengthy investigation – came three days after university administrators disclosed that they had launched their own inquiry.
According to the police department, “more than 20 investigative personnel contributed to this extensive investigation, requiring nearly 200 hours of overtime.”
In a campus statement issued Monday, SDSU President Adela de la Torre noted that San Diego police had initially requested that the university not conduct its own investigation or “do anything that could jeopardize or interfere with its criminal investigation.”
In an about-face, however, the SDPD informed university officials last month that they could move forward with their own inquiry.
In her campus message, De la Torre sought to assure students “that we have and continue to take action.”
“Our process, following California State University system-wide policy, has already begun, and pertinent details and allegations are being examined,” she added. “As I have stated before, no one is above the law, and anyone found to have violated the law and university policy should suffer the consequences.”
SDSU’s Title IX investigation will examine whether university policy has been violated, rather than whether criminal acts have been committed.
The latest development comes less than a month before the university is set to open the new Snapdragon Stadium in Mission Valley while also marking 100 years of SDSU football.
– City News Service