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Sexual assault charges filed against Wisconsin WR Quintez Cephus [UPDATED]

Cephus released a statement via Twitter Saturday night.

Wisconsin v Indiana Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images

Update—Monday, 4:55 p.m. CT: Following the revelation of these charges, Wisconsin has announced the suspension of Cephus. We will be publishing a new story shortly and all updates will go there.


Update—Monday, 3:50 p.m. CT: More details are emerging Monday.

As B5Q’s Bob Wiedenhoeft (and several others on Twitter) noticed Monday afternoon, there is now a listing in Wisconsin Circuit Court records with information about the charges Cephus is facing. They include one count of third-degree sexual assault and one count of second-degree sexual assault-intoxicated victim.


Update—Monday, 1:55 p.m. CT: Only players were available to media post-practice today. One update:


Update—Monday, 1:33 p.m. CT: Cephus will face still-unspecified charges in Dane County court on Thursday morning, Dane County DA Ismael Ozanne told News 3.


Original story by Jake Kocorowski

On Saturday evening before Wisconsin’s practice, wide receiver Quintez Cephus announced via Twitter that he will take a leave of absence from the program. Cephus’s statement cited potential legal charges being filed against him stemming from an April incident.

In the statement, Cephus states he is being “wrongfully accused of unlawful conduct” and claims innocence in what he references as a “consensual relationship.”

The precise legal issues or criminal charges are not known at this time.

The Wisconsin State Journal’s Jason Galloway reported on Saturday evening that Cephus talked with head coach Paul Chryst earlier in the day about the leave of absence, with the team learning about it “at a regularly scheduled meeting later in the day.”

After practice, head coach Paul Chryst met with reporters.

“Earlier today, I met with Q, and I know he was planning to release a statement, and at this time really don’t have anything more to add to that,” Chryst said.

When asked if he and Cephus met and came to the decision, or if it was Cephus’s decision, Chryst replied, “Like I said earlier, I’m going to stick with that.”

Read Cephus’s full statement below:

Later on Saturday evening, WISC-TV’s Melissa Kim contacted the Madison Police Department, with police chief Mike Koval responding:

Before his season-ending injury in early November last year, Cephus caught 30 passes for 501 yards and six touchdowns. He missed most of spring practice this year but returned in limited fashion during the last week of April. He practiced extensively during fall camp through Friday.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.