COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) – Two former Ohio State football players pleaded not guilty Thursday to charges that they held a woman against her will and raped her this month.
Defensive backs Amir Riep and Jahsen Wint – who were kicked off the team Wednesday after they were charged – made an initial appearance in Franklin County Municipal Court in Columbus, and their respective attorneys entered pleas of not guilty.
Judge Cynthia Ebner set bond at $100,000 for Riep and $75,000 for Wint and ordered that the men not have contact with the accuser or each other. They also were ordered not to discuss her on social media.
The case now will go to a grand jury, which will decide whether the men should be indicted.
Former Ohio State Buckeyes football player Amir Riep listens during his arraignment on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2020, at the Franklin County Municipal Courthouse in Columbus, Ohio. Riep, who was dismissed from the team on Feb. 12, 2020 ,along with teammate and co-defendant Jahsen Wint, are charged with the rape and kidnapping of a 19-year-old woman on Feb. 4, 2020 at an apartment the two men share. (Joshua A. Bickel/The Columbus Dispatch via AP)
Wint’s attorney, Sam Shamansky, declared his client innocent, pointing out that Columbus police waited seven days to arrest him.