Barely two months after the Chicago Blackhawks copped the 2015 Stanley Cup, star player Patrick Kane is once again in the headlines.
The bad news is that it has nothing to do with hockey. Rather, the 26-year-old NHL star is currently being investigated for rape charges which were filed by a woman from Upstate New York. Word about the rape charges against Kane were first reported by Buffalo News.
As per the report, the female complainant has accused the four-time NHL All Star of sexual assault. To strengthen her claim, the said woman reportedly went to the hospital to undergo tests using a rape kit.
"We are aware of the matter and are in the process of gathering information," the team said in a statement. "It would be inappropriate to comment further at this time" says NHL group vice president of communications Frank Brown on the alleged claims against Kane.
For now, Kane has not been officially charged with anything. The NHL star is scheduled to bring the Stanley Cup to Buffalo over the weekend as they celebrate the Blackhawk’s third title over the last six years.
Various reporters tried to get a statement from the Kane camp but such left them empty-handed.
That included Kane’s defense lawyer Paul J. Cambria Jr. who simple replied: “I have nothing to say.”
Cambria is the same guy who represented Kane in 2009 when the NHL star found himself involved in a separate incident. In 2009 Kane was caught up in an altercation with a Buffalo cab driver.
Kane together with his cousin, ended up pleading guilty to disorderly conduct for assaulting a taxi driver in August 9, 2009. Kane was charged with for punching the cab driver, second-degree robbery, fourth-degree criminal mischief and theft of service at that time.
Apparently, everyone aware of the situation have been ordered to keep it under wraps. This even includes Hamburg police officials who were directed not to publicly discuss the investigation.
“We can neither confirm nor deny the existence or nonexistence of a criminal investigation until such a time as a person is charged with a crime,” said Hamburg Police Chief Gregory G. Wickett.
Kane was the top overall pick of the 2007 NHL Draft by the Chicago Blackhawks and has been a key figure in the team’s three championships (2010, 2013 and 2015). The Blackhawks defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games in this year’s Stanley Cup finals.