The Agholor Sexual Assault Investigation Is Now With the D.A.’s Office

A dancer at Cheerleaders accused the young Eagles wide receiver of raping her earlier this month. His attorney remains confident Agholor won't face charges.

Photo By Jeff Fusco

Photo | Jeff Fusco

The investigation into sexual assault allegations involving Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Nelson Agholor is now in the hands of District Attorney Seth Williams.

“The [investigative] package has been sent to the D.A.’s Office for their review,” Police Commissioner Richard Ross told Philadelphia magazine on Thursday night. Ross declined to comment further on the case.

A 27-year-old dancer at Cheerleaders Gentleman’s Club accused the 23-year-old wide receiver of raping her inside the club earlier this month. Agholor’s attorney, Fortunato “Fred” Perri Jr., has maintained that Agholor did not commit a crime.

“We’ve been in touch with the investigators, but I can’t comment on the progress of the investigation,” Perri said. “It’s always difficult when something like this happens. [Agholor] has been staying close with his family and doing the best he possibly can.”

Williams’s spokeswoman, Jennifer Jones, said the office could not comment on the investigation. Williams typically holds a press conference to announce his decisions on high-profile criminal investigations.

The dancer first made allegations against Agholor after he and two other Eagles — defensive lineman Fletcher Cox and defensive end Connor Barwin — visited the South Philadelphia club in the late afternoon of June 9th. The team had wrapped up its final spring practice earlier that day.

The Police Department’s Special Victims Unit investigated the claim, while members of the Crime Scene Unit visited the club to search for potential evidence. There proved to be no video footage of Agholor’s encounter with the dancer.

In the hours that followed the first news reports about the investigation into Agholor, both Cox and Barwin issued statements distancing themselves from whatever might have transpired between the young wide receiver and the dancer. The story shifted on social media, where veteran reporters who cover the Eagles quickly noted that they’d been told by sources that Agholor had somehow been the victim of a setup.

Then came a report from NJ.com, which cited sources who claimed Agholor, a 2015 first-round draft pick, had allegedly paid the dancer $800 for time they spent together in a private room, after having earlier agreed to pay her $1,400 — the implication being that a money dispute was at the heart of the allegations.

The specter of the case has been unavoidable, even as the team took a short break before the start of training camp in August. Eagles head coach Doug Pederson reportedly dodged questions about the situation while he was at the Ron Jaworski Celebrity Golf Challenge at Blue Heron Pines Golf Club. Howie Roseman, the team’s executive vice president of football operations, also declined to address the matter during a press conference to announce a massive $103 million contract extension for Cox.

It’s unclear when Williams will announce whether or not his office will bring criminal charges.

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