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Investigators bring rape charges against athlete Alexander Yemelyanenko

Yemelyanenko is accused of indecent assault of a woman who was a cleaner at his apartment

MOSCOW, May 10, /ITAR-TASS/. Mixed martial arts exponent Alexander Yemelyanenko has been questioned as a rape case suspect, and investigators have requested his arrest, the press service of the Investigative Committee (SK) told Itar-Tass on Saturday.

"He has already been questioned and charged. Also, investigators have asked the court to sanction his custody," the press service said.

"Yemelyanenko is accused of indecent assault of a woman who was a cleaner at his apartment, overnight to March 3, and of stealing the victim's passport," an SK official said.

On May 9, Yemelyanenko was detained in Tambov, Russia, after causing a car crash, and convoyed to Moscow.

Regional road police said Yemelyanenko, driving along Stepan Razin Street toward central Tambov, lost control of his Opel Astra and hit a lamp post which collapsed on the car, injuring his passenger.

The passenger was taken to hospital with a broken leg.

Yemelyanenko refused a breathalyzer test and would not be calmed down. However, the police called to the scene did not use force against him. He was eventually talked into going to a district police station where Moscow police later collected him to convoy to the Russian capital.

It is not the first rape allegation against Yemelyanenko.

In August 2013, police checked a report by a 23-year-old woman who claimed Yemelyanenko had raped her in a Moscow apartment. Police questioned Yemelyanenko and inspected the alleged rape scene, but brought no charges as the girl had withdrawn her claim.

In early 2014, a criminal case was opened against Yemelyanenko over punching an elderly man in a Moscow cafe. The parties later settled the matter amicably.

Yemelyanenko, 32, is a multiple world and Russian mixed fighting champion.

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