Yankees Hall of Fame Mariano Rivera and his wife, Clara Riverawere accused of covering up child sexual abuse in their home and at their church.
These accusations were brought against Mariano (55 years old) and Clara in a lawsuit filed in New York on Thursday, January 16.
Complaint filed in and obtained in Westchester County Superior Court Us WeeklyThe Riveras allege a cover-up of abuse of a young girl associated with their church, Hope Shelter in New Rochelle, New York.
Mariano is the main pastor of the church while Clara is in charge of its daily operations. They are accused of negligence after discovering that the young girl (known as “Jane Doe”) was being abused by an older minor girl (known as “MG”) and did not act after the discovery.
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The alleged abuse occurred during a 2018 summer internship at Ignite Life Center in Gainesville, Florida, a program supported by Refuge of Hope Church. Clara encouraged the plaintiff to participate in the training and suggested it to her mother, according to the complaint. The plaintiff's mother became concerned about her daughter's safety at camp after phone calls from the plaintiff, which she then raised with Clara, who assured Jane Doe's mother that she would investigate further, according to the lawsuit.
According to the complaint allegations, the Riveras made their way from New York to summer camp in Florida where they “learned or should have learned information” about sexual assault.
Mariano Rivera
(Photo by Nick Lahham/Getty Images)“Instead of taking adequate action to end the sexual abuse of Jane Doe (the victim), each Riveras family individually isolated and intimidated Jane Doe into remaining silent about her abuse by MJ (the suspect) to avoid causing problems for the refugee organization,” the complaint says. And summer training to ignite life.”
The alleged abuse then continued at a barbecue at the couple's former home in Rye, New York, after Jane Doe returned from summer camp, according to the lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges that the couple invited church children to a barbecue where Jane Doe was left unsupervised with MJ despite previous incidents that allegedly occurred at summer camp in Florida. The children's parents, including Jane Doe's mother, were allegedly not invited to the barbecue.
While Hollywood may seem glitzy and glamorous on the surface, the industry has seen its fair share of scandals over the years. The New York Times and The New Yorker first published investigative articles in 2017 that accused disgruntled film producer Harvey Weinstein of decades of sexual assault and harassment. Shortly after, Weinstein appeared in court and was[…]
The complaint alleges that the Riveras did not take appropriate action and chose to deal with it internally in order to “avoid scrutiny, public scandal, and potential financial losses from allegations of child sexual abuse that became public information.”
Ruben Tavarez Jr., Adult son of Hope Shelter's associate pastor Ruben Tavarez Sr.is also accused in the August 2021 assault case against the girl.
Baseball star Mariano found fame playing 19 seasons as a closer for the New York Yankees. During his tenure from 1995 to 2013, he became a 13-time MLB All-Star and a five-time World Series champion. In 1999, he was named Most Valuable Player in that year's World Series. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Donald Trump in 2019. That same year, he was unanimously inducted into the Hall of Fame.
The Riveras family has not yet responded to the lawsuit and does not have an attorney listed.
