CRISTIANO Ronaldo has sensationally claimed that a cyber criminal had fabricated stolen documents to make the football superstar look guilty of rape.
His lawyer Peter Christiansen said paperwork published by German magazine Der Spiegel had been hacked from computers and altered.
Ronaldo (33) denies attacking Kathryn Mayorga in a Las Vegas hotel in 2009 and maintains the sex was consensual.
American lawyer Christiansen said the Portuguese forward faced “an elaborate and deliberate defamation campaign based on stolen, easily manipulated digital documents”.
He added: “It is my understanding that in 2015, dozens of entities (including law firms) across many different industries throughout Europe were hacked and their electronic data was stolen.
“This hacker attempted to sell this data and one media outlet has now irresponsibly published the stolen documents, significant portions of which were altered or completely fabricated.”
The star player has branded rape allegations against him as an attempt to destroy a reputation “built on hard work, athleticism and honour”.
The £100 million (R1,9 billion) forward issued a blistering statement after saying he felt “compelled to no longer stand silent” following Mayorga’s accusation.
Mayorga (34) alleges that the incident took place at the Palms Casino Resort in June 2009, while Ronaldo celebrated his big money move to Real Madrid.
The former Manchester United star used a team of fixers – agents, lawyers and private investigators – to thrash out a £287 000 (R5,5 million) settlement with Mayorga in 2010.
But the teacher is now claiming that she only signed because she was “terrified of retaliation” from the player and her lawyers are now suing Ronaldo.
He says the motivations for signing the resolution “have been twisted, to say the least” and labels the accusations as part of an “elaborate and deliberate defamation campaign”.
Christiansen admitted for the first time that the former Red Devils idol had signed a non-disclosure agreement with Mayorga.
He stressed that the reported deal in 2010 was “by no means a confession of guilt” but to avoid attempts to destroy Ronaldo’s reputation.
Video footage has also emerged of Ronaldo, who now plays for Italian giants Juventus, relaxing by a hotel pool on the day of the alleged rape.
Las Vegas metropolitan police department has reopened its investigation into the alleged rape.
But Ronaldo firmly denies the claims of sexual misconduct and said he is “confident that the truth will survive this frenzy”.
Said his lawyer: “What occurred in 2009 in Las Vegas was consensual in nature.
“Mr Ronaldo was advised to privately resolve the allegation against him in order to avoid the inevitable attempts that are now being made to destroy a reputation that has been built upon hard work, athleticism and honour.”
The statement comes as lawyers for his accuser say they are probing three more claims surrounding the football star.
One woman is reportedly claiming that she was raped by Ronaldo after a party.
– THE SUN
