An Ohio State University massage therapist has been accused of offering massages to football players at the college and using the rub-downs to initiate sex with five of them, USA Today reports. The 41-year-old woman, whose name was redacted in the 15-page report released by the university, agreed on March 22 to surrender her license rather than be subject to an investigation into claims that she engaged in “sexual misconduct with one or more clients.”
- The Medical Board of Ohio received the first complaint in March 2020. The complaint lodged with the board alleged that the therapist offered free massages to football players as a way to try and have sex with them. When they refused her, she demanded payment for her services. For some reason, the investigation was postposed until March 2021 and Ohio State University hired the law firm of Barnes & Thornburg to start the investigation.
- More than 100 interviews were conducted by the lawyers. The law firm interviewed 117 current and former players as well as 44 current and former coaches and members of staff to determine whether or not the accused woman was guilty of any crimes or NCAA violations. According to Ohio State, no crimes were committed. However, that doesn’t mean what she did wasn’t wrong.
- The players she had sex with said it was consensual. Of all the players the lawyers interviewed, 83 said they didn’t know the therapist and had never met her while 20 said they received massages without any sexual advances made by the woman. However, five admitted to having consensual sex with the woman after she made her move. As none of the students were underage, there was no official crime committed. None of the coaches or staff members knew anything about her.
- Ohio State University insisted she was not an employee of the school. They further clarified that she had no connection with the school at all, nor any connections with anyone who worked there. The fact that she happened to be approaching football players at the school was opportunistic and coincidental but not sanctioned by Ohio State. “The investigation found no evidence that the massage therapist is or was acting on behalf of an agent or any particular person or entity in professional or collegiate sports, much less on behalf of OSU athletics,” the report stated. “Rather, the facts indicate that she seemed to be acting for her own sexual gratification and that she acted alone.”
- The woman used social media to get in touch with the players. In the messages, many of which were sent on Natinoal Signing Day when new players joined the team, she persistently pursued the young men and even claimed she worked for professional sports teams to make herself seem more credible. Those claims were false. She even sent explicit messages and photos to the players and continued even in the absence of a response. It’s clear this woman was a predator.