MINNEAPOLIS (AP) University of Minnesota basketball player Reggie Lynch will not be charged following his arrest on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct in May, a prosecutor said Monday.
The Hennepin County Attorney’s office found ”insufficient evidence to prove that a crime was committed,” spokesman Chuck Laszewski told the St. Paul Pioneer Press (http://bit.ly/2aKYq4g ).
Lynch, 21, was arrested May 8. He was released from jail when a 36-hour hold expired and the prosecutor delayed a decision on whether to charge him.
Lynch’s attorney, David Valentini, told The Associated Press he is ”very happy” no charges will be filed.
”He told his version of the facts. I just was confident that after a thorough investigation that no charges would be brought,” Valentini said.
Minnesota earlier suspended Lynch pending an investigation. The 6-foot-9 player from suburban Edina didn’t play last season as he sat out following his transfer from Illinois State.
Lynch was at the school Monday and was going to sit out another practice, Valentini said.
Asked if Lynch was still suspended, team spokesman Dan Reisig told the AP: ”We do not have any additional information to share at this time.”
At Illinois State, Lynch led the Missouri Valley Conference in blocked shots as both a freshman and a sophomore, averaging 2.8 per game. In the 2014-15 season, he averaged 9.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 22.2 minutes per game for the Redbirds.
Lynch, who was ineligible to play last season after transferring from Illinois State, is the nephew of former Gophers star Kevin Lynch. He’s being counted on to help lift the Gophers out of the hole they fell into in coach Richard Pitino’s third year, which finished with an 8-23 record, the most losses in the program’s 121-year history.
They’ve made more news for developments off the court, lately.
Three guards, Kevin Dorsey, Nate Mason and Dupree McBrayer, were suspended for the last four games after a sex video briefly appeared on Dorsey’s social media accounts. Dorsey has left the program with the intent to transfer. Mason and McBrayer have been reinstated.
Guard Daquein McNeil was dismissed during the 2014-15 season after being charged with two felony counts of assault for allegedly choking his girlfriend and whipping her with a belt.
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Information from: St. Paul Pioneer Press, http://www.twincities.com
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