MUNSTER HAVE STATED today that one of their players Chris Farrell 'will be stepping back from his involvement with the province' while a legal case in France regarding an alleged rape still is ongoing.
Farrell (29) is one of five players referred to a French criminal court for the alleged offence. The Irishman is not accused of rape but is facing an accusation of "not stopping a crime" according to a report by Independent.ie
Three former Grenoble players, Irishman Denis Coulson, Rory Grice and Loick Jammes have denied rape allegations facing them and claim any contact they had with their accuser - a 21-year-old student - was consensual.
The alleged incident took place in March 2017, following Grenoble's Top 14 loss to Union Bordeaux Begles. Farrell and Dylan Hayes, also both playing with Grenoble at the time
In a statement, Munster confirmed centre Chris Farrell will not be involved with the team while the French legal process is ongoing https://t.co/O0zPwWwZcL
— Independent.ie (@Independent_ie) September 22, 2022
A statement from Munster read: "Munster Rugby and Chris Farrell have agreed that, with immediate effect, he will be stepping back from his involvement with the Munster squad whilst legal proceedings in France, concerning his alleged involvement as a witness to an alleged crime in 2017, are ongoing.
"As this is an active legal matter before the French courts, we have no further comment."
According to reports in France, the case has been referred to the Assises Court of Gironde, which deals with severe criminal cases
All five can still appeal the decision to another appeal court known as the Court of Cassation, which deals with the interpretation of law rather than the facts of a case.
