Illinois hoop star Terrence Shannon Jr. has been suspended indefinitely after being charged with rape.
A warrant for Shannon’s arrest was issued by the Douglas County (Kansas) district attorney’s office Wednesday over allegations that he sexually assaulted someone in September.
According to jail records, the basketball star turned himself in and was arrested in Lawrence, Kansas, on Thursday morning on a charge of “rape; sexual intercourse without consent and use of force.”
The university released a statement on the alleged incident, saying that it allegedly occurred while Shannon was in Lawrence to attend the Illinois-Kansas football game. The school noted that Shannon was “not in Lawrence on official University business, nor was he a member of the University’s travel party.”
Shannon posted $50,000 bail Thursday and was returning to Champaign, Illinois. Mark P. Sutter, an Illinois-based attorney representing Shannon, said his client is innocent and intends to take the case to trial.
“Since September, when these allegations surfaced, Terrence has cooperated with law enforcement throughout the investigation, declaring his innocence from the beginning,” Sutter said in a statement.
“Now, several months later, my office learned that formal charges were filed against him yesterday in Lawrence, KS. In less than 24 hours, my client responded, and he voluntarily surrendered to local authorities for processing and release. Terrence is innocent of these charges, and he intends to take his case to trial.”
Illinois officials said that they were informed that the Lawrence police department was investigating the alleged incident since late September but that they did not receive “actionable information” until Wednesday when the warrant for his arrest was issued, ESPN reported.
The charge against Shannon states that he “unlawfully, feloniously, and knowingly engaged in sexual intercourse with a person … who did not consent to the sexual intercourse under circumstances when she, was overcome by force or fear, a severity level 1 person felony,” according to a copy of the complaint obtained by the outlet.
The woman is not named, but multiple law enforcement officers and another unnamed individual are listed as witnesses.
Shannon faces a minimum of 147 months and a maximum of 653 months in prison and/or a fine of up to $300,000, if he is convicted.
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