Police have launched an investigation into a serious sex-related allegation regarding two prominent Maccabi Tel Aviv Football Club players, who, according to the claim, had sex with a pair of underage high school students.
The players allegedly met the two girls - who are believed to be 15 years old - at a birthday party of another soccer player and invited them back to the apartment of one of the players.
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Illustration, Maccabi F.C. players in their home stadium of Bloomfield, Tel Aviv
(Photo: Oz Mualem)
Other soccer players also attended the party, and in the event of a formal police investigation, it is likely they will be interviewed as part of efforts to piece together the events of the night.
An exchange of text messages between the minors and the players allegedly reveals the existence of a sexual connection, but a formal investigation will likely try to focus on two things - evidence of sexual contact and whether the players knew the true ages of the two girls.
At the end of the initial process, which is being conducted by the head of investigations, David Buani, a report will be submitted to Yigal Ben-Shalom, the chief of Lahav 443 crimes unit, who will decide whether the formal investigation is warranted.
In a statement Thursday, the police said it has launched an inquiry “regarding recent reports” about the incident but said they would not elaborate further.
Meanwhile, the two players have gone underground and did not respond to inquiries. But friends of the two claim that the pair have correspondence with the minors, in which they claimed to be 18 years old.
According to the players’ friends, the two didn't know the girls were minors, claiming the girls “told us otherwise.”
Maccabi Tel Aviv said in a statement: "The club is aware of the media publications and is monitoring the developments. We will not respond beyond this at this time. "
According to a news report, the case was brought to the attention of Maccabi Tel Aviv by representatives from the school attended by the two girls.
"It was difficult for us to hear about such things. An underage girl involved with adults sounds crazy to us, but they didn't want to make a police complaint,” said a close associate of the two girls.
It was apparently not the two girls themselves who submitted the complaint to the school administration, but their friends.
First published: 15:37, 06.11.20