Riot has suspended professionalValorantplayer Sinatraa for failing to cooperate with the ongoing sexual assault investigation. According to Riot, Sinatraa failed to provide key evidence for the investigation and made “false statements,” leaving the matter up in the air.
Earlier this year, Sinatraa’s former girlfriend Cleo “cle0h” Hernandez, publiclyaccused Sinatraa of sexual assaulton Twitter by sharing a lengthy Google Doc. This document contained both paragraphs of personal experiences as well as screenshots and audio clips claiming to be proof that she was abused by Sinatraa. In his own statement,Sinatraa heldthat he “remembers things differently.” Shortly after, Riot took immediate action by suspending the professionalValorantplayer from participating in esports competitions and launched an investigation.
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According to Riot,Sinatraadid not participate in the investigation the way he was expected to. According to Sinatraa’s follow-up statement on Twitter, the investigation team asked him to reproduce the video or audio clip that Hernandez referenced in her Google Doc. However, Sinatraa claims that he no longer has the video in his possession as his former partner had asked him to delete it after the two broke up, “and I honored that,” he states. This video is a key piece of evidence in the ongoing investigation.
Additionally, Sinatraa failed to cooperate in the investigation by making false statements, Riot says, and misrepresenting facts. Riot does not explain what statements were falsified or misrepresented, but it does emphasize the importance of cooperating with a sexual assault investigation. Therefore, Riot determined that Sinatraa violated Rule 8.1 of theValorantGlobal Competition Policy, which states that each team member agrees to cooperate with any internal or external investigation.
Finally, Riot says that the sexual assault allegations had been referred to law enforcement. Riot itself was unable to determine whether or not the sexual assault allegations were factual, it details in the statement. Going forward, it sounds like the ongoing investigation will be in the hands of authorities, buttheValorantdevelopment studioreserves the right to reopen the investigation at any time.
TheprofessionalValorantplayerwill be expected to complete professional conduct training prior to returning to competitive esports. Riot considers the investigation to have begun in March when the sexual assault allegations came to light, so after assigning him a suspension of six months for violating Rule 8.1, the suspension will last until May 16, 2025 at the end of the Stage 3 Challenger season and final Masters event.
